Synonyms for taboo
- adjective
- verb
- noun
Most common
prohibited forbidden verboten unthinkable ineffable unsayable
Synonyms by meaning
Adjective
1. Forbidden
forbidden, verboten, prohibited, proscribed, out, interdicted
Other
Verb
Other
tabooize rare
Noun
Definitions
- adj. 1
Excluded or forbidden from use, approach or mention.
Incest is a taboo subject in most soap operas.
- v. 1
To mark as taboo.
- n. 1
An inhibition or ban that results from social custom or emotional aversion.
Related words
- Word family
- tabooize tabooification
- Other spellings
- tabu tamboo
Example sentences
- prohibited An accident prohibited his attending the ceremony.
- forbidden Hunting game is forbidden in these tranquil woods.
- unthinkable It was next to unthinkable that the boy would steal.
- ineffable Something ineffable about you fascinates me, woman.
- unsayable The Real, according to Jacques Lacan, is the unsayable itself.
Popularity over time
| Word | 1850 → 2019 | Trend |
|---|---|---|
| taboo | rising | |
| prohibited | steady | |
| forbidden | steady | |
| verboten | rising | |
| unthinkable | rising | |
| ineffable | rising |
Use in printed books, per decade from 1850 to 2019.
By length
- 3 letters
- out1, ban1
- 4 letters
- veto2
- 6 letters
- forbid2
- 7 letters
- boycott2
- 8 letters
- prohibit3, sanction2, disallow3, verboten3, tabooize
- 9 letters
- forbidden3, ineffable4, interdict3, proscribe2, unsayable
- 10 letters
- prohibited4, forbidding3, proscribed2
- 11 letters
- prohibition4, unthinkable4, interdicted4
- 12 letters
- interdiction4, proscription3
The small number after each word is its number of syllables (veto2 = 2 syllables).