forbid
forbid Lexical Profile
forbid Game Scores & Validity
• verb
To refuse to allow something, or to order someone not to do something, officially or authoritatively.
"The university strictly forbids students to use electronic devices during final examinations."
To make an action or outcome impossible or prevent it from occurring (of a circumstance, condition, or constraint).
"Tightly scheduled work commitments and a limited budget forbid any extended travel this summer."
Word Nuance & Usage
The standard past tense is 'forbade' (pronounced /fərˈbæd/ or /fərˈbeɪd/), though 'forbad' is an accepted variant; the past participle is always 'forbidden'. Syntactically, 'forbid' takes an object followed by an infinitive ('forbid someone to do something') or a gerund ('forbid doing something'), rather than a 'from' construction.
• Rhymes for forbid
• Nearby Words
Word Origin & Etymology
From Old English 'forbeodan', meaning to command against or prohibit, formed from the prefix 'for-' (against, away) and 'beodan' (to command or offer).