forgive

verb

for·​give fər-ˈgiv 

fȯr-

forgave fər-ˈgāv 

fȯr-

; forgiven fər-ˈgi-vən 

fȯr-

; forgiving

transitive verb

1

: to cease to feel resentment against (an offender) : pardon

forgive one's enemies

2

a

: to give up resentment of or claim to requital (see requital sense 1) for

forgive an insult

b

: to grant relief from payment of

forgive a debt

intransitive verb

: to grant forgiveness

had to learn to forgive and forget

forgivable

fər-ˈgi-və-bəl 

fȯr-

adjective

forgivably

fər-ˈgi-və-blē 

fȯr-

adverb

forgiver noun

Synonyms of forgive

• pardon
• ignore

Choose the Right Synonym for forgive

excuse, condone, pardon, forgive mean to exact neither punishment nor redress.

excuse may refer to specific acts especially in social or conventional situations or the person responsible for these.

excuse an interruption

excused them for interrupting

Often the term implies extenuating circumstances.

injustice excuses strong responses

condone implies that one overlooks without censure behavior (such as dishonesty or violence) that involves a serious breach of a moral, ethical, or legal code, and the term may refer to the behavior or to the agent responsible for it.

a society that condones alcohol but not narcotics

pardon implies that one remits a penalty due for an admitted or established offense.

pardon a criminal

forgive implies that one gives up all claim to requital and to resentment or vengeful feelings.

could not forgive their rudeness

Examples of forgive in a Sentence

Can you ever forgive me for being so selfish?

I've never forgiven myself for the way I treated her.

We must ask God to forgive us for our sins.

When he feels he's been insulted, he finds it hard to forgive and forget.

He finds it hard to forgive an insult.

We must ask God to forgive our sins.

The government has agreed to forgive some of the debt.

Recent Examples on the Web

Newbury Street still hasn’t forgiven her. —Wendy Murphy, Boston Herald, 13 Apr. 2026

For now, at least, the audience seems forgiving, which lets Jomboy try new things. —Louisa Thomas, New Yorker, 12 Apr. 2026

You’d be forgiven for getting the impression that Apple and Netflix were at odds somehow upon seeing the reports that Netflix has switched the content-player screen on its Apple TV app back to its own design instead of the native Apple player. —Eric Vilas-Boas, Vulture, 10 Apr. 2026

The agreement allows the loan to be repaid over 10 years, but the payments will be forgiven by the village if the restaurant remains in operation for 10 years. —Jennifer Johnson, Chicago Tribune, 8 Apr. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Old English forgifan, from for- + gifan to give

First Known Use

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 2a

Phrases Containing forgive

• forgive me

Rhymes for forgive

• ogive
• outlive
• relive
• corroborative
• determinative
• germinative
• transformative
• give
• sieve
• resistive

Kids Definition

forgive

verb

for·​give fər-ˈgiv 

fȯr-

forgave -ˈgāv  ; forgiven -ˈgiv-ən  ; forgiving

1

a

: to give up resentment of or claim to revenge for

forgive an insult

b

: to stop requiring payment of

forgive a debt

2

: to stop feeling anger toward (an offender)

forgive your enemies

forgivable

-ˈgiv-ə-bəl 

adjective

forgiver noun