forbid Meaning, Definition & Usage

  1. verb command against
    prohibit; proscribe; disallow; veto; nix; interdict.
    • I forbid you to call me late at night
    • Mother vetoed the trip to the chocolate store
    • Dad nixed our plans
  2. verb keep from happening or arising; make impossible
    prevent; preclude; foreclose; forestall.
    • My sense of tact forbids an honest answer
    • Your role in the projects precludes your involvement in the competitive project

WordNet

For*bid" transitive verb
Etymology
OE. forbeden, AS. forbeódan; pref. for- + beódan to bid; akin to D. verbieden, G. verbieten, Icel., fyrirbj&omac;&edh;a, forbo&edh;a, Sw. förbjuda, Dan. forbyde. See Bid, v. t.
Wordforms
imperfect Forbade ; past participle Forbidden (Forbid, [obsolete ]); present participle & verbal noun Forbidding
Definitions
  1. To command against, or contrary to; to prohibit; to interdict.
    More than I have said . . . The leisure and enforcement of the time Forbids to dwell upon. Shak.
  2. To deny, exclude from, or warn off, by express command; to command not to enter.
    Have I not forbid her my house? Shak.
  3. To oppose, hinder, or prevent, as if by an effectual command; as, an impassable river forbids the approach of the army.
    A blaze of glory that forbids the sight. Dryden.
  4. To accurse; to blast. Obs.
    He shall live a man forbid. Shak.
  5. To defy; to challenge. Obs. L. Andrews. Syn. -- To prohibit; interdict; hinder; preclude; withold; restrain; prevent. See Prohibit.
For*bid" intransitive verb
Definitions
  1. To utter a prohibition; to prevent; to hinder. "I did not or forbid." Milton.

Webster 1913