obey
Americanverb (used with object)
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to comply with or follow the commands, restrictions, wishes, or instructions of.
to obey one's parents.
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to comply with or follow (a command, restriction, wish, instruction, etc.).
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(of things) to respond conformably in action to.
The car obeyed the slightest touch of the steering wheel.
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to submit or conform in action to (some guiding principle, impulse, one's conscience, etc.).
verb (used without object)
verb
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to carry out (instructions or orders); comply with (demands)
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to behave or act in accordance with (one's feelings, whims, etc)
Other Word Forms
- obeyable adjective
- obeyer noun
- obeyingly adverb
- unobeyed adjective
- unobeying adjective
- well-obeyed adjective
Etymology
Origin of obey
First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English obeien, from Old French obeir, from Latin oboedīre, equivalent to ob- ob- + audīre “to hear”; -oe- for expected -ū- is unclear
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.
We let ourselves blend into the algorithm, feeding and obeying the machine.
They must obey laws, but beyond that, social media companies can filter content as they like, and anything objectionable is the responsibility of whomever posted it.
From Barron's
They must obey laws, but beyond that, social media companies can filter content as they like, and anything objectionable is the responsibility of whomever posted it.
From Barron's
He obeyed and burned the project files in a bonfire on the beach.
“When asked to generate images, it will refuse to produce anything illegal, as the operating principle for Grok is to obey the laws of any given country or state.”
From MarketWatch
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.
