English Reference

Word

forsake

Phoneticsfor·sake, stress on the second syllable

US/fɔɹˈseɪk/

UK/fɔːsˈeɪk/

Irregular verb

Forms

Infinitive

forsake

Past

forsook

Past participle

forsaken

Definition

v. to leave someone or something behind for good. It is an old-fashioned word that you might see in stories or poems.

v. to leave behind or abandon permanently. Often used in literary or formal contexts to describe a deliberate and final departure.

Examples

“He was willing to forsake his old life for a new adventure.”

“The knight was forced to forsake his family and his home to join the king's army.”

“In many ancient myths, the protagonist must forsake their former identity to achieve a higher state of being or to fulfill a divine prophecy.”

Examples

simple

“He was willing to forsake his old life for a new adventure.”

contextual

“The knight was forced to forsake his family and his home to join the king's army.”

complex

“In many ancient myths, the protagonist must forsake their former identity to achieve a higher state of being or to fulfill a divine prophecy.”

Etymology

From Middle English forsaken (“to abandon, desert, repudiate, withdraw allegiance from; to deny, reject, shun; to betray; to divorce (a spouse); to disown; to be false to (one's nature, vows, etc.); to give up, renounce, surrender; to discard; to omit; to decline, refuse, reject; to avoid, escape; to cease, desist; to evade, neglect; to contradict, refute; to depart, leave; to become detached, separate”) [and other forms], from Old English forsacan (“to oppose; to give up, renounce; to decline, refuse”), from Proto-West Germanic frasakan (“to forsake, renounce”), from Proto-Germanic fra- (prefix meaning ‘away, off’) + sakaną (“to charge; to dispute”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European seh₂g- (“to seek out”)). The English word can be analysed as for- + sake, and is cognate with Saterland Frisian ferseeke (“to deny, refuse”), West Frisian fersaakje, Dutch verzaken (“to renounce, forsake”), Middle High German versachen (“to deny”), Danish forsage (“to give up”), Swedish försaka (“to be without, give up”), Norwegian forsake (“to give up, renounce”), Gothic 𐍃𐌰𐌺𐌰𐌽 (sakan, “to quarrel; to rebuke”), .

Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Word family

VERB

forsake(C1)

ADJECTIVE

This entry

Exam level
CambridgeCambridgeCambridge English QualificationsThe exam suite from Cambridge University Press & Assessment, from A1 Movers up to C2 Proficiency. The benchmark names double as CEFR labels.C1 AdvancedIELTSIELTSInternational English Language Testing SystemThe 0–9 band test co-owned by the British Council, IDP, and Cambridge. Used for university entry, work, and migration.7.0–8.0TOEFL iBTTOEFL iBTTest of English as a Foreign Language, Internet-Based TestETS's academic English test, the standard route for US university admissions. Scored 0–120, with a 1–6 scale since 2026.1–6 scale: 5.0–5.595–113TOEICTOEICTest of English for International CommunicationETS's workplace English test, big in Japan and Korea. Listening & Reading scores 10–990 and tops out at C1.945–990
Frequency
Occasional
Level
C1 · Advanced
Updated

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English Reference