taboo
noun
[ təˈbuː ]
• a social or religious custom prohibiting or restricting a particular practice or forbidding association with a particular person, place, or thing.
• "many taboos have developed around physical exposure"
Similar:
prohibition,
proscription,
veto,
interdiction,
interdict,
ban,
restriction,
boycott,
non-acceptance,
anathema,
taboo
adjective
• prohibited or restricted by social custom.
• "sex was a taboo subject"
Similar:
forbidden,
prohibited,
banned,
proscribed,
vetoed,
ruled out,
interdicted,
outlawed,
not permitted,
not allowed,
illegal,
illicit,
unlawful,
impermissible,
not acceptable,
restricted,
frowned on,
beyond the pale,
off limits,
out of bounds,
unmentionable,
unspeakable,
unutterable,
ineffable,
censored,
rude,
impolite,
indecorous,
dirty,
verboten,
haram,
tapu,
no go,
non licet,
taboo
verb
• place under a taboo.
• "traditional societies taboo female handling of food during this period"
Origin:
late 18th century: from Tongan tabu ‘set apart, forbidden’; introduced into English by Captain Cook.
