Meaning & use
prohibits
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“prohibits” is a form of “prohibit”. See that entry for the full set of meanings.
Meaning
verbtransitive
Says officially that something must not be done, usually through a law, rule or contract.
Grammar: Takes an object: the law prohibits smoking.
Patterns
- something prohibits something
- something prohibits someone from doing something
The contract prohibits tenants from keeping pets.
This regulation prohibits the sale of fireworks to children.
The school rule prohibits phones in exams.
Word forms
| base form | prohibit |
|---|---|
| past tense | prohibited |
| past participle | prohibited |
| -ing form | prohibiting |
Common combinations
- law prohibits
- The law prohibits driving without insurance.
- prohibits the use of
- The policy prohibits the use of personal email.
- strictly prohibits
- The company strictly prohibits gifts from suppliers.
- prohibits someone from
- The order prohibits him from contacting her.
- expressly prohibits
- The agreement expressly prohibits subletting.
Synonyms and how they differ
- bans
- Bans is shorter and more common in news writing, often for whole categories of things.
- forbids
- Forbids can be personal as well as official, while prohibits is usually about rules and law.
- outlaws
- Outlaws only works for laws and makes something illegal, which is stronger than prohibits.
- prevents
- Prevents means makes something impossible in practice, not just against the rules.
Opposites
Word family
- prohibition noun
- an official rule or law against something
- prohibited adjective
- not allowed
- prohibitive adjective
- so high, as of a price, that people cannot afford it
- prohibitively adverb
- to an extent that stops people doing something
Commonly confused: prohibits or prohibitive?
prohibits vs prohibitive
Prohibitive is an adjective, often about costs that are too high; prohibits is a verb.
Practice
The building rules ______ residents from painting the outside walls.
Choose one answer.
Prohibit from doing means officially stop. The other verbs would mean the opposite or use a different pattern. Rules here take a plural verb, so the base form is correct.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “prohibits”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.