The new contract forbids a strike by the transportation union

Question

The new contract  forbids a strike by the transportation union .

(A) forbids a strike by the transportation union

(B) forbids the transportation union from striking

(C) forbids that there be a strike by the transportation union

(D) will forbid the transportation union from striking

(E) will forbid that the transportation union strikes

https://www.nytimes.com/1999/11/25/nyregion/transit-union-leader-sets-pay-demand.html

M.T.A. officials at first discounted the possibility of a strike by the city's 33,000 subway and bus workers, but now some officials acknowledge it is a distinct possibility. New York State's Taylor Law  prohibits strikes by transit workers and other public employees , but that did not stop the union from staging an 11-day strike in 1980, for which it was fined $1.5 million.

sayantanc2k · Accepted Answer

The idiom "forbid from" is wrong. Hence B and D can be eliminated.
The verb "forbid" does not take a subjunctive. Hence C is out.
Option E is doubly wrong because of the use of command subjunctive with the verb "forbid" and wrong verb in command subjunctive ("strikes"). In other words, even if the verb "forbid" took a subjunctive, option E would still be wrong because of wrong verb "strikes".

Forbid can be used in two forms:

1. with an infinitive, taking the entity who is forbidden as the indirect object and the forbidden action as the infinitive : The new contract forbids the union to strike... correct (answer to  forbids whom  question)
OR
2. without an infinitive, taking the forbidden action as a direct object: The new contract forbids a strike by the union... correct. (answer to  forbids what  question)

Hence option A is correct (second form above.)

MichaelS · Answer

Forbid  can be used in at least three ways:
1)  Forbid +infinitive,  The concert ticket explicitly forbids us to reenter. 
2)  Forbid +noun,  The concert ticket explicitly forbids reentry.  The noun here can be a gerund,  The concert ticket explicitly forbids reentering the theater. 
3)  Forbid + from +gerund,  The concert ticket explicitly forbids us from reentering.
 
Although it may sound awkward with this sentence (and I expect the GMAT would make a less awkward job of it than I have), that first,  forbid +infinitive, is the one I've noticed on the GMAT.
I can't recall seeing that third way used in any correct SC answer to a real GMAT question, so I would perhaps be skeptical of B, but it's not actually wrong as used here. B has a slightly different meaning than A, but that difference is much too subtle to be an issue on the GMAT.

Finally, before you sweat such idioms too much, check out  https://www.manhattangmat.com/blog/index.php/2011/09/19/idioms-myths-and-more-news-from-the-gmac/

x2suresh · Answer

A sounds good to me.

Forbid X to do Y is correct idiom
Forbid X from Y is incorrect
prohibit X from Y is correct

Forbid X --> is also correct idiom.

Only A makes sense here.

gtr022001 · Answer

sc grail:
A)  John has forbidden his daughter from going out in the night .
A – the correct idiom is ‘forbidden to’ & not ‘forbidden from’

i.e. forbid X to do Y 
Correct: John forbid his driver to enter the house 
Incorrect:  John forbid his driver from entering the house

Practicegmat · Answer

Thanks for the help! So, you believe (a) is the correct answer here ? Am not clear yet. I am confused with the options (a) and (b)

As per the explanation, (a) uses the form (2) below : Forbid+noun; (b) uses form (3) below : Forbid+from+gerund. But you have also mentioned (a) and (b) has a slight different meaning.. could you please elaborate on this further? Thanks

MichaelS · Answer

Sorry I wasn't more clear. I'd choose A. Although it's not in the form the GMAT uses most often, A is best.

Oh, and good catch on that note from our SC Guide. Apparently  forbid from  shows up only in wrong answers. Notice that the guide is emphatic that  forbid from  is wrong on the GMAT SC, while Standard Written English countenances  forbid from  in some circumstances. That marks a difference between GMAT English and SWE, but as one of our instructors says, the GMAT is never wrong about the GMAT.

deekshant111 · Answer

Explanation:

Idiom: Forbid…..to (do)……

A-  CORRECT: concise .
B-  …forbid….from – incorrect construction. 
C-  …there be a strike… - wordy. 
D-  Same as B. 
E-  …will forbid that…the union strikes. – the word ‘strikes’ comes almost as a noun. Intent not delivered.

All the best.

abhimahna · Answer

The new contract forbids a strike by the workers union.

A. forbids a strike by the workers union. 
B.  forbids  the workers union  from  striking.
C. will  forbid  the worker union  from  striking
D. forbids  that there be a strike  by the workers union
E. will  forbid  the workers union  from  striking

kannu44 · Answer

I didn't understand why B is wrong even though it uses correct idiom. Kindly explain. Thanks for your time

sayantanc2k · Answer

B uses wrong idiom - "forbid from" is wrong; the correct usage is "forbid to".

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The new contract forbids a strike by the transportation union

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The new contract forbids a strike by the transportation union

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