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
His prose is equally forbidding—dense and abstract, in the long tradition of German philosophy.
—
Adam Kirsch, The Atlantic, 3 May 2026
Meanwhile, the windswept moors feel like something out of a classic thriller, forbidding and alluring at once.
—Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 16 Feb. 2026
Reams of barbed wire gathered from the fields around Penpont were fashioned into a mesh curtain whose ends wrapped around two columns at the top of the museum’s grand staircase; the result was both alluring and forbidding.
—Rebecca Mead, New Yorker, 9 Feb. 2026
Just hearing how dangerous and forbidding K2 is can give you a chill (and the cold is part of it — even at base camp, the temperatures can reach 50 below).
—Owen Gleiberman, Variety, 22 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for forbidding
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Adam Kirsch, The Atlantic, 3 May 2026
Meanwhile, the windswept moors feel like something out of a classic thriller, forbidding and alluring at once.
—Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 16 Feb. 2026
Reams of barbed wire gathered from the fields around Penpont were fashioned into a mesh curtain whose ends wrapped around two columns at the top of the museum’s grand staircase; the result was both alluring and forbidding.
—Rebecca Mead, New Yorker, 9 Feb. 2026
Just hearing how dangerous and forbidding K2 is can give you a chill (and the cold is part of it — even at base camp, the temperatures can reach 50 below).
—Owen Gleiberman, Variety, 22 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for forbidding
Cite this Entry
“Forbidding.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/forbidding. Accessed 18 May. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
forbidding
adjective
: tending to frighten or discourage
a dark forbidding sky
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