forbidding

adjective

for·​bid·​ding fər-ˈbi-diŋ How to pronounce forbidding (audio)
fȯr-
1
: such as to make approach or passage difficult or impossible
forbidding walls
2
: disagreeable, repellent
a forbidding task
3
: grim, menacing
a dark forbidding sky
forbiddingly adverb

Examples of forbidding in a Sentence

a harsh and forbidding landscape a dark, forbidding house, that is reputed to be haunted
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
This is music at once pristine and forbidding, redolent of the austere polyphony of the late Middle Ages and the early Renaissance. Alex Ross, The New Yorker, 2 Dec. 2024 The most forbidding child care markets in 2022 voted two years later for Trump by higher margins than the nation overall, but so did many of the areas where child care was more affordable. Alexandra Byrne, NBC News, 24 Nov. 2024 Slowly, the color drains out of the image and the green frontier becomes a forbidding, black-and-white expanse. Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 21 June 2024 For months, housing market conditions in a handful of battleground counties have been slightly less forbidding than in the U.S. overall, according to NBC News’ Home Buyer Index, which measures the relative difficulty of buying a home from one county to the next nationwide. Shannon Pettypiece, NBC news, 22 Oct. 2024 See all Example Sentences for forbidding 

Word History

First Known Use

1599, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of forbidding was in 1599

Dictionary Entries Near forbidding

Cite this Entry

“Forbidding.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/forbidding. Accessed 29 Dec. 2024.

Kids Definition

forbidding

adjective
: tending to frighten or discourage
a dark forbidding sky
forbiddingly adverb

More from Merriam-Webster on forbidding

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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