forget

From Middle English forgeten, forgiten, foryeten, forȝiten, from Old English forġietan (“to forget”) [influenced by Old Norse geta ("to get, to guess")], from Proto-West Germanic *fragetan (“to give up, forget”). Equivalent to for- +‎ get.

Cognate with :

• Scots forget, forȝet (“to forget”),
• West Frisian fergette, ferjitte, forjitte (“to forget”),
• Dutch vergeten (“to forget”),
• German vergessen (“to forget”).

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /fəˈɡɛt/,[1] (less commonly:) /fɔːˈɡɛt/

• Audio (RP, ‘to forget’)

  (file)

• (General American) IPA^(key): /fɚˈɡɛt/,[2][3][4] (less commonly:) /fɔɹˈɡɛt/[2][3][4]

• Audio (GA)

  (file)

• Hyphenation: for‧get
• Rhymes: -ɛt

forget (third-person singular simple present forgets, present participle forgetting, simple past forgot or (obsolete) forgat, past participle forgotten or (archaic or colloquial) forgot)

1. (transitive) To lose remembrance of.

   I have forgotten most of the things I learned in school.

   • 1593, Tho[mas] Nashe, Christs Teares Over Ierusalem. […], London: […] Iames Roberts, and are to be solde by Andrewe Wise, […], →OCLC, folio 60, verso:

     VVe (of all earthlings) are Gods vtmoſt ſubiects, the laſt (in a manner) that he bought to his obedience: ſhal we then forgette that vvee are any ſubiects of hys, becauſe (as amongſt his Angels) he is not viſibly conuerſant amongſt vs?

   • 1921 June, Margery Williams, “The Velveteen Rabbit: Or How Toys Become Real”, in Harper’s Bazar, volume LVI, number 6 (2504 overall), New York, N.Y.: International Magazine Company, →ISSN, →OCLC:

     For at least two hours the Boy loved him, and then Aunts and Uncles came to dinner, and there was a great rustling of tissue paper and unwrapping of parcels, and in the excitement of looking at all the new presents the Velveteen Rabbit was forgotten.

2. (transitive) To unintentionally not do, neglect.

   I forgot to buy flowers for my wife at our 14th wedding anniversary.

   • 1905, Lord Dunsany [i.e., Edward Plunkett, 18th Baron of Dunsany], The Gods of Pegāna, London: [Charles] Elkin Mathews, […], →OCLC:

     Pray, thou, therefore, to Slid, and forget not Slid, and it may be that Slid will not forget to send thee Death when most thou needest it.

3. (transitive) To unintentionally leave something behind.

   I forgot my car keys in the living room.

4. (intransitive) To cease remembering.

   Let's just forget about it.

   He forgot having already visited this city.

5. (transitive, loosely, informal) To not realize something (regardless of whether one has ever known it).

   People forget how much work goes into what we do.

6. (slang) Euphemism for fuck, screw (a mild oath).

   Forget you!

• In sense 1 and 4 this is a catenative verb that takes the gerund (-ing).
• In sense 2 this is a catenative verb that takes the to infinitive.
• See Appendix:English catenative verbs

• obliviate, overlook, pass over, disremember

• acquire, learn, mind, recall, recollect, remember, reminisce

• “forget”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911, →OCLC.
• “forget”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.