Obey definition and meaning
Obey definition: If you obey a person, a command , or an instruction, you do what you are told to do. | Meaning, pronunciation, translations and examples
Definition of ’obey’
obey
(
oʊb
eɪ
)
Word forms:
obeys
,
obeying
,
obeyed
transitive verb
/
intransitive verb
obey
a person, a command, or an instruction, you do what you are told to do.
Cissie obeyed her mother without question.
Most people obey the law.
It was his duty to obey.
obey
COBUILD Advanced English Dictionary
. Copyright © HarperCollins Publishers
Video: pronunciation of obey
obey
in American English
(
oʊˈbeɪ
)
verb transitive
1.
2.
3.
to
obey
one’s conscience
verb intransitive
4.
obedient
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. All rights reserved.
obeyer
(
oˈbeyer
)
noun
obey
in British English
(
əˈbeɪ
)
verb
1.
2.
Collins English Dictionary
. Copyright © HarperCollins Publishers
obeyer
(
oˈbeyer
)
noun
C13: from Old French
obéir,
from Latin
oboedīre,
from
ob-
to, towards +
audīre
to hear
Examples of ‘obey’ in a sentence obey
No
wonder
obeying
national
laws or paying
taxes
feels
such an
imposition
.
Times, Sunday Times
(
2016
)
You could
render
yourself’guilty’ by obeying the law.
Times, Sunday Times
(
2017
)
You
must
obey my laws and
follow
my
decrees
.
Christianity Today
(
2000
)
They had to obey
strict
security
instructions or be
expelled
.
Times, Sunday Times
(
2009
)
Do you
think
people should obey you without
question
?
Times, Sunday Times
(
2007
)
One can only obey the
call
and
present
oneself.
Times, Sunday Times
(
2014
)
Only my right
arm
still
obeyed me.
Times, Sunday Times
(
2011
)
We
will
show
solidarity
and we will obey the law.
The Sun
(
2011
)
It was
code
for her to obey his instructions.
Times, Sunday Times
(
2009
)
Best
get
on with doing the
job
while still obeying the law.
Times, Sunday Times
(
2012
)
This
simple
requirement
to obey the law works
well
when the law is
clear
.
Times, Sunday Times
(
2015
)
And heads must obey their crackpot instructions.
The Sun
(
2006
)
People were therefore
obliged
by
considerations
of
self-interest
to obey the commands of
established
government.
Eccleshall, Robert
English Conservatism since the Restoration: An introduction and anthology
(
1990
)
And
maybe
that’s what one is obeying.
Times, Sunday Times
(
2010
)
He wouldn’t
eat
or
sleep
or obey any command.
The Sun
(
2010
)
A
society
runs
much more efficiently if people obey without being constantly
coerced
.
Low, Nicholas
Politics, Planning and the State
(
1990
)
You control what you
want
to do to them and by the time they are
trained
, they obey you without question.
Times, Sunday Times
(
2014
)
In this line of
thought
, the
manager
ought to be a
dictator
: obeyed without question.
Times, Sunday Times
(
2013
)
Trends of obey
View usage over:
In other languages obey
British English
:
əˈbeɪ
/
VERB
obey
a rule, instruction, or person, you do what you are told to do.
American English
:
oʊˈbeɪ
/
Arabic
:
يُطِيعُ
Brazilian Portuguese
:
obedecer
Chinese
:
Croatian
:
poštovati
Czech
:
poslouchat
Danish
:
adlyde
Dutch
:
gehoorzamen
European Spanish
:
Finnish
:
totella
French
:
German
:
Greek
:
υπακούω
Italian
:
Japanese
:
従う
Korean
:
순종하다
Norwegian
:
adlyde
Polish
:
być posłusznym
European Portuguese
:
Romanian
:
a fi supus
Russian
:
слушаться
Spanish
:
Swedish
:
lyda
Thai
:
เชื่อฟัง
Turkish
:
boyun eğmek
Ukrainian
:
слухатися
Vietnamese
:
vâng lời
Nearby words of obey
Source
obey
from the
Collins English Dictionary
Quick word challenge
Quiz Review
1
–
Score:
0
/
5
pain
or
pane
?
waist
or
waste
?
He put his arm round my
.
principal
or
principle
?
It’s not just a matter of
.
scent
or
sent
?
written
or
wrote
?
I have
quite a lot of orchestral music.
Your score:
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