verb, -bore, -borne, -bear⋅ing.| 1. | to refrain or abstain from; desist from. |
| 2. | to keep back; withhold. |
| 3. | Obsolete. to endure. |
| 4. | to refrain; hold back. |
| 5. | to be patient or self-controlled when subject to annoyance or provocation. |
for·bear 1 (fôr-bâr') v. for·bore (-bôr', -bōr'), for·borne (-bôrn', -bōrn'), for·bear·ing, for·bears v. tr.
[Middle English forberen, from Old English forberan, to endure; see bher-1 in Indo-European roots.] for·bear'er n. |
for·bear 2 (fôr'bâr', fōr'-) n. Variant of forebear. |
fore·bear also for·bear (fôr'bâr', fōr'-) n. A person from whom one is descended; an ancestor. See Synonyms at ancestor. [Middle English forbear : fore-, fore- + beer, one who is (from ben, to be; see be).] |