əˈbīd verb
( abode -bōd ; or abid·ed -bīdə̇d ; abode or abided also abid·den -bid ə n ; abiding ; abides )
Etymology: Middle English abiden, from Old English ābīdan, from ā- (perfective prefix) + bīdan to bide, wait — more at abear , bide
transitive verb
1. archaic
a. : to wait for : await expectantly : watch for : expect
I will abide the coming of my lord — Alfred Tennyson
b. : to stand ready for : await — used of things awaiting persons
the fate which abides him
2.
a. obsolete : to stand up under : endure or undergo (a hard trial or task)
material able to abide hard use
b. : to endure without yielding : await defiantly : withstand , face
abide the onrush of the enemy
abide one's doom
c. : to endure or bear patiently : tolerate , stand — used in negative construction
cannot abide such people
can't abide the taste of caraway
sometimes with to and the infinitive
cannot abide to stay in one position for long — T.B.Costain
3. : to await submissively : accept without question or objection
unwilling to abide the decision of the court
: submit to
works securely established among the classics have had to abide the question of a new criticism
4.
[by folk etymology from aby ]
: to atone for : pay for : suffer for
dearly I abide that boast so vain — John Milton
intransitive verb
1. : to wait in expectation or before proceeding : tarry , delay , stop
the sawyer did not participate … but abided at a little distance — Charles Dickens
we shall abide till the battle is won — Rudyard Kipling
2.
a. : to be or remain stable or fixed in some state or constant in some relationship : continue
let every man abide in the same calling wherein he was called — 1 Cor 7:20 (Authorized Version)
a love that abides with him all his days
b. : to continue to be : last , endure
though many features were abiding, the changes were much felt
3. : to be left : remain
tho' much is taken, much abides — Alfred Tennyson
4. : to continue in a place : have one's abode : dwell
I repented my rashness in venturing to abide in town — Daniel Defoe
Synonyms: see bear , continue , stay
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- abide by