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forbade

American  
[fer-bad, -beyd, fawr-] / fərˈbæd, -ˈbeɪd, fɔr- /
Also forbad

verb

  1. a simple past tense of forbid.

forbade British  
/ fəˈbæd, -ˈbeɪd, fəˈbæd /

verb

  1. the past tense of forbid

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

It forbade companies from paying dividends or buying back stock “until such time as they are able to produce a superior product, on time and on budget.”

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 16, 2026

In a video posted Wednesday, Transport Minister Said bin Hamood bin Said Al Maawali said that international conventions signed by Oman forbade taking tolls for passage, but that talks were ongoing with the foreign ministry.

From Barron's • Apr. 9, 2026

And Handorf bought land near La Puente, which he forbade his family from selling.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 14, 2026

The rules allowed demonstrators to gather but forbade them from marching.

From BBC • Feb. 13, 2026

If one forbade her to sleep beyond dawn, another insisted she remain in bed till noon.

From "Interpreter of Maladies" by Jhumpa Lahiri

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.