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forbear

 [fawr-bair]   Example Sentences Origin

for·bear

1   [fawr-bair] verb, -bore, -borne, -bear·ing.
verb (used with object)
1.
to refrain or abstain from; desist from.
2.
to keep back; withhold.
3.
Obsolete. to endure.
verb (used without object)
4.
to refrain; hold back.
5.
to be patient or self-controlled when subject to annoyance or provocation.

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Forbear is a GRE word you need to know.
So is forswear. Does it mean:
simulated signing of another person's name to writing
reject or renounce under oath
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Origin:
before 900; Middle English forberen, Old English forberan. See for-, bear1

Related forms
for·bear·er, noun
for·bear·ing·ly, adverb
non·for·bear·ing, adjective
non·for·bear·ing·ly, adverb
un·for·bear·ing, adjective

Synonyms
1. forgo, sacrifice, renounce.

Example Sentences
  • We forbear to write them down until the mention of them can be accomplished with a fitting tribute to their virtues and valor.
  • But even he can scarce forbear to cheer the dash of the confederacy's cavalry and the resilience of its infantry.
  • Pettersson wil be prosecuted, and a cour will try the case, or the prosecutor will decide to forbear to prosecute.
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Dictionary.com Unabridged

for·bear

2   [fawr-bair]
noun
forebear.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
Cite This Source Link To forbear
Collins
World English Dictionary
forbear1 (fɔːˈbɛə)
 
—vb (when intr, often foll by from or an infinitive) , -bears, -bearing, -bore, -borne
1.  to cease or refrain (from doing something)
2.  archaic to tolerate or endure (misbehaviour, mistakes, etc)
 
[Old English forberan; related to Gothic frabairan to endure]
 
for'bearer1
 
—n
 
for'bearingly1
 
—adv

forbear2 (ˈfɔːˌbɛə)
 
—n
a variant spelling of forebear

forebear or forbear (ˈfɔːˌbɛə)
 
—n
an ancestor; forefather
 
forbear or forbear
 
—n

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline
Word Origin & History

forbear
"to abstain," O.E. forberan "bear up against, control one's feelings, endure," from for + beran "to bear" (see bear (v.)). Related: Forbearer; forbearing; forbore.
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forbear
late 15c., from fore "before" + be-er "one who exists."
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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