verb · formal
forbid
UK/fəˈbɪd/US/fərˈbɪd/for·BID
to order someone not to do something; to ban something by authority
Examples
“The school forbids students from using mobile phones during exams.”
“My parents forbade me to go out late on school nights.”
“The new law forbids smoking in all public indoor spaces.”
Band 8 sentence
“Although the university formally forbids plagiarism, some students still underestimate the severity of the penalties.”
Collocations
- forbid someone from doing something
- forbid access / forbid entry
Word family
Common mistakes
He forbid me to speak at the meeting yesterday.→He forbade me to speak at the meeting yesterday.
They have forbid smoking here.→They have forbidden smoking here.
Parents forbid children to going out late.→Parents forbid children from going out late.
Say it for a higher band
5ban→6prohibit→7+forbid
Synonyms
prohibit
ban
Easily confused
prohibit
“The law prohibits the sale of certain pesticides.”
Related words
Learn this word with the rest of its set, and get reminded at the right time.
In Irregular forms
Learn it with its set