forbear
English
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forbear¹
- /fɔːˈbɛə/ UK
- /fɔɹˈbɛɚ/ US
Rhymes with -ɛə(ɹ)
Where it comes from
From Middle English forberen, from Old English forberan (“to forbear, abstain from, refrain; suffer, endure, tolerate, humor; restrain; do without”), from Proto-Germanic *fraberaną (“to hold back, endure”); equivalent to for- + bear. Cognate with Old Frisian forbera (“to forfeit”), Middle High German verbërn (“to have not; abstain; refrain from; avoid”) (Cimbrian forbèeran), Gothic 𐍆𐍂𐌰𐌱𐌰𐌹𐍂𐌰𐌽 (frabairan, “to endure”).
verb forbears · forbearing · forbore · forborne · forborn · forebear
- To keep away from; to avoid; to abstain from. Mr. Sheriff, I desire that this manacling may be forborn: if you please to clap a guard of a hundred men upon us, I shall pay for it. This is not only a disgrace to me, but in general to all soldiers; which doth more trouble me than the loss of my life.
- To refrain from proceeding; to pause; to delay. Por[tia]. I pray you tarrie, pauſe a day or two Before you hazard, for in chooſing wrong I looſe your companie ; therefore forbeare a while, /[...]
- To refuse; to decline; to withsay; to unheed. And thou ſhalt ſpeake my words vnto them, whether they will heare or whether they will forbeare, for they are moſt rebellious.
- To control oneself when provoked. The kindest and the happiest pair Will find occasion to forbear.
forbear²
- /ˈfɔː.bɛə/ UK
- /ˈfɔɹ.bɛɚ/ US
noun forbears
- Alternative spelling of forebear [1906] 2004, Memoirs of the Lord of Joinville, Ethel Wedgwood tr. Sirs, I am quite sure that the King of England's forbears rightly and justly lost the conquered lands that I hold …
Translations
Every language
verb to keep away from
| Español | abstenerse |
|---|---|
| Français | éviter, s'abstenir |
| Italiano | astenersi da, evitare, fare a meno di, tenersi alla larga da |
| Русский | избега́ть izbegátʹ |
verb to refrain from proceeding
| Français | ajourner, refréner, réfréner |
|---|---|
| Italiano | aggiornare, trattenere, frenare |
| Русский | возде́рживаться vozdérživatʹsja |
verb to control oneself when provoked
| Español | retenerse |
|---|---|
| Français | se retenir, garder son sang froid |
| Italiano | trattenersi da, mantenere la calma |
| Русский | быть терпели́вым bytʹ terpelívym, проявля́ть терпе́ние projavljátʹ terpénije, контроли́ровать себя́ kontrolírovatʹ sebjá |
Talk about this word "forbear." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/forbear. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. forbear. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/forbear "forbear." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/forbear.Cite this
@misc{forbear_2026,
title = {forbear},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/forbear},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
