Word.ws English Dictionary

forgetting

Syllables: for·get·tingUK/fəˈɡɛtɪŋ//fɚˈɡɛtɪŋ/

forgetting is the present participle and gerund of forget.

Meaning of forget

Verb

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.
  2. (transitive) To unintentionally not do, neglect.
    • I forgot to buy flowers for my wife at our 14th wedding anniversary.
  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 I ever told you anything about it.
    Synonyms:
    leave behind
  5. (broadly, informal, transitive) 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 this, I'm done!

See all 7 meanings of forget

Noun

forgetting (plural forgettings)

  1. The mental act by which something is forgotten.
    • Jelliffe […] asks again and again […] how it was possible for an illness which had been described unmistakably innumerable times to be 'forgotten' anew by each generation. Such forgettings are as dangerous as they are mysterious, for they give us an unwarranted sense of security.1973, Oliver Sacks, Awakenings
    • This inability to articulate a complete description can be thought of as of a "piece" with human finitude; the limits, deaths, and forgettings, the "off switches" that also comprise the human narrative.1997, Richard Doyle, On Beyond Living, page 108

Forms of forgetting

pluralforgettings

Words formed from forgetting

Phrases with forgetting

Words that rhyme with forgetting

Questions about forgetting

What does forgetting mean?
Forgetting means the mental act by which something is forgotten.
What is forgetting the present participle and gerund of?
Forgetting is the present participle and gerund of forget.
What part of speech is forgetting?
Forgetting is a noun.
How do you pronounce forgetting?
Forgetting is pronounced /fəˈɡɛtɪŋ/ (UK).
What is the plural of forgetting?
The plural of forgetting is forgettings.

Words near forgetting in the dictionary

  1. Forgettes
  2. forgettest
  3. forgetteth
  4. forgetties
  5. forgettin'
  6. forgetting
  7. forgetting about
  8. forgetting one's manners
  9. forgetting oneself
  10. forgetting to take one's medication this morning
  11. forgetting to take one's pills this morning

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: forgetting (page history and authors); forget (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: en-us-forgetting.ogg.

Cite this entry: “forgetting.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/forgetting. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.