forbidding
adjective
for·bid·ding
fər-ˈbi-diŋ 
fȯr-
1
: such as to make approach or passage difficult or impossible
forbidding walls
2
: disagreeable, repellent
a forbidding task
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
Some observers found the ending of the Fifth cold and forbidding.
—
Alex Ross, The New Yorker, 21 Nov. 2024
And if his forbidding tone wasn't enough to kill the joking mood inside the transport, the school bus blocking the road in front of them finishes the job.
—Sara Netzley, EW.com, 5 May 2025
Seen from below on a day of lowering clouds, the town can still seem a forbidding place, though inside the gates, floral window boxes and the lines of laundry that stretch across narrow lanes like festive banners lighten the fortress mood.
—Lee Marshall, Travel + Leisure, 15 Apr. 2025
States should get serious about forbidding, rather than replacing, structures in seriously flood-prone locales like some barrier islands in Florida or the banks of North Carolina’s French Broad River.
—Orlando Sentinel and South Florida Sun Sentinel Editorial Boards, The Orlando Sentinel, 4 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for forbidding
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Alex Ross, The New Yorker, 21 Nov. 2024
And if his forbidding tone wasn't enough to kill the joking mood inside the transport, the school bus blocking the road in front of them finishes the job.
—Sara Netzley, EW.com, 5 May 2025
Seen from below on a day of lowering clouds, the town can still seem a forbidding place, though inside the gates, floral window boxes and the lines of laundry that stretch across narrow lanes like festive banners lighten the fortress mood.
—Lee Marshall, Travel + Leisure, 15 Apr. 2025
States should get serious about forbidding, rather than replacing, structures in seriously flood-prone locales like some barrier islands in Florida or the banks of North Carolina’s French Broad River.
—Orlando Sentinel and South Florida Sun Sentinel Editorial Boards, The Orlando Sentinel, 4 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for forbidding
Cite this Entry
“Forbidding.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/forbidding. Accessed 14 Jul. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
forbidding
adjective
: tending to frighten or discourage
a dark forbidding sky
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