forbear

1. (transitive) To keep away from; to avoid; to abstain from.Examples: "Mr. Sheriff, I desire that this manacling may be forborn: if you please to clap a guard of a hundred men upon us, I shall pay for it. This is not only a disgrace to me, but in general to all soldiers; which doth more trouble me than the loss of my life."; "The earth shall soon dissolve like snow the sun forbear to shine"; "Poor Arabs wondered why I had no mare; I forbore to puzzle them by incomprehensible talk of hardening myself, or confess I would rather walk than ride for sparing of animals:"transitive

2. (intransitive) To refrain from proceeding; to pause; to delay.Examples: "Por[tia]. I pray you tarrie, pauſe a day or two Before you hazard, for in chooſing wrong I looſe your companie ; therefore forbeare a while, /[...]"; "Then the king of Iſrael gathered the prophets together about foure hundred men, and ſaid vnto them, Shall I goe againſt Ramoth Gilead to battell, or ſhall I forbeare? [...]"intransitive

3. (intransitive) To refuse; to decline; to withsay; to unheed.Examples: "And thou ſhalt ſpeake my words vnto them, whether they will heare or whether they will forbeare, for they are moſt rebellious."intransitive

4. (intransitive) To control oneself when provoked.Examples: "The kindest and the happiest pair Will find occasion to forbear."intransitive