I. fȯrˈbid, fȯəˈ-, fə(r)ˈ- verb
( for·bade -ˈbad, -ˈbād, -ˈbaa(ə)d ; or for·bad ; for·bid·den -ˈbid ə n ; or archaic forbid ; forbidding ; forbids )
Etymology: Middle English forbidden, alteration (influenced by bidden to entreat, pray, invite, command) of forbeden, from Old English forbēodan (akin to Old Frisian urbiāda to forbid, Old High German firbiotan, Gothic faurbiodan ), from for- + bēodan to offer, proclaim, command — more at bid
transitive verb
1. : to command against or contrary to : interdict
forbid the banns
: prohibit
order … forbidding strikes of civil-service employees — Collier's Year Book
the law forbids rich and poor alike to sleep under bridges
God forbid that war should come
2.
a. : to exclude or warn off from by express command
I forbid you the house
b. : to bar from use
forbade … movie cameras at House Committee hearings — Americana Annual
running with the ball is forbidden in basketball
3. : to hinder or prevent as if by an effectual command : make impossible or impracticable
rocky rapids forbade further progress up the stream
space forbids further treatment of the subject here
modesty forbids telling what my part in the affair was
intransitive verb
: to utter a prohibition : hinder
forbid who will, none shall from me withhold longer thy offered good — John Milton
Synonyms:
forbid , prohibit , enjoin , interdict , inhibit , and ban can mean, in common, to debar (someone) from doing, using, entering, or otherwise acting or to order (something) not to be done, used, entered, or otherwise acted upon. The more or less familiar forbid and the more formal prohibit imply the exercise of authority or the existence of imperative conditions, forbid suggesting an expected obedience or an absolute proscription, prohibit applying more particularly to official and less autocratic proscriptions
forbid a child to go out on a rainy day
a law forbidding the sale of liquor on Sunday
limitations of space forbid elaborately detailed treatments of these subjects — American Guide Series: New Hampshire
the act was wrong in the sense that it was prohibited by law — B.N.Cardozo
condemned for not taking active steps toward prohibiting an armed group from organizing on its soil — Collier's Year Book
implements of war would be prohibited and prevented — Vera M. Dean
enjoin , a legal term implying a judicial order that forbids something under penalty, suggests a strong and compelling proscription or exhortation
the president, under the war powers, seized the railroads and the courts enjoined the strike — Collier's Year Book
a deed of filial duty enjoined upon him by his father's fearful command — Karl Polanyi
immediately after he had concluded his lecture, someone was certain to enjoin him to relax — Bryan MacMahon
interdict implies prohibition by authority usually for a given time and for a salutary purpose
the navy has prohibited, the church has interdicted the defloration ceremony, formerly an inseparable part of the marriages of girls of rank — Margaret Mead
alcohol and tobacco are interdicted — Year Book of Medicine
to interdict, or at least discourage, his visits — George Meredith
inhibit applies to the imposition of restraints or restrictions whether by authority or by circumstances or conditions
signalized the opening of a new reign by inhibiting stage plays — A.T.Quiller-Couch
stiff royalties — payable in dollars — have inhibited widespread production of United States plays — W.H.Whyte
the destructive exchange practices which inhibited the flow of world trade — Eugene Meyer
ban implies civil or ecclesiastical prohibition and strongly connotes condemnation or disapproval
these laws … were specific in naming the one weapon to be banned — R.W.Thorp
the proscribed categories of persons banned from Federal employment — Benjamin Ginzburg
authorities banned the rebuilding of wooden houses in the same area — Theodore Hsi-en Chen
II. adjective
Etymology: from archaic past participle of forbid (I)
archaic : accursed
she becomes a leper herself … and lives for years in a cave hermitage, a thing forbid — Nation
the sensitive plant, like one forbid , wept — P.B.Shelley