Link Centre Dictionary

taboo

ta·boo

UK/təˈbuː/ US/tæˈbuː/ uncommon

adjective

1.

excluded from use or mention

  • “forbidden fruit”
  • “in our house dancing and playing cards were out”
  • “a taboo subject”
2.

forbidden to profane use especially in South Pacific islands

Synonyms
Similar

noun

1.

a prejudice (especially in Polynesia and other South Pacific islands) that prohibits the use or mention of something because of its sacred nature

Synonyms
2.

an inhibition or ban resulting from social custom or emotional aversion

Synonyms

verb

Origin

Borrowed from Tongan tapu (“prohibited, sacred”), from Proto-Polynesian *tapu, from Proto-Oceanic *tabu, from Proto-Eastern Malayo-Polynesian *tambu. Doublet of kapu. First attested in c. 1777. The p in the Tongan source was misheard as b.

Phrases

  • taboo avoidance
  • taboo deformation

Related words

Word family

Broader terms

WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.