Meaning & use
taboo
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Meanings
nouncountable
A strong social or religious rule against doing or mentioning something, because people think it is shameful or sacred.
Grammar: Plural is taboos. Often followed by against or on: a taboo against speaking about death.
Patterns
- a taboo against something
- a taboo on something
- break a taboo
In some cultures, there is a taboo against eating with the left hand.
Talking about salary was once a strict taboo in the office.
The film broke a taboo by showing mental illness honestly.
adjectivecomparable
Forbidden or avoided because it is thought improper, shocking or holy.
Grammar: Used before a noun or after be: a taboo topic, such a question is taboo.
Patterns
- be taboo
- a taboo subject
Death was a taboo subject at the family dinner table.
In their religion, certain foods are taboo.
Saying that word on live television is still taboo.
verbtransitiveformal
To forbid or ban something because it is held to be improper or sacred.
Grammar: Takes an object and is often passive: the practice was tabooed.
Patterns
- taboo something
- be tabooed
The tribe tabooed the use of the dead chief's name.
Public displays of affection were tabooed in the village.
Word forms
| plural | taboos |
|---|---|
| third person singular | taboos |
| past tense | tabooed |
| past participle | tabooed |
| -ing form | tabooing |
Common combinations
- break a taboo
- The comedian broke a taboo by joking about funerals.
- a social taboo
- Discussing money is still a social taboo in some families.
- a cultural taboo
- Eating beef is a cultural taboo for many Hindus.
- a taboo subject
- Mental health used to be a taboo subject.
- lift a taboo
- Open campaigns have helped lift the taboo around depression.
Synonyms and how they differ
- prohibition
- Prohibition is a formal rule or law against something, while a taboo is a feeling of shame or holiness shared by a community.
- forbidden
- Forbidden says only that something is not allowed, without the deep social or religious dread of taboo.
- off-limits
- Off-limits is informal and practical, describing a place or subject that people may not enter or discuss.
- unmentionable
- Unmentionable describes something so embarrassing you cannot speak of it, which is narrower than taboo.
Opposites
Word family
- tabooed adjective
- banned by taboo
- tabu noun
- a variant spelling of taboo
Commonly confused: taboo or tattoo?
taboo vs tattoo
A tattoo is a permanent design on the skin; a taboo is a forbidden topic or act, though the words look and sound alike.
Practice
In many societies, openly discussing death remains a ____ that people rarely break.
Choose one answer.
A taboo is a strong social rule against a topic or act. The other nouns look similar but do not mean a forbidden subject.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “taboo”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.