prohibitive

adjective

pro·​hib·​i·​tive prō-ˈhi-bə-tiv 

prə-

1

: tending to prohibit or restrain

2

: tending to preclude use or purchase

prohibitive costs

3

: almost certain to perform as predicted

a prohibitive favorite

prohibitively adverb

prohibitiveness noun

Examples of prohibitive in a Sentence

the prohibitive cost of rent

Recent Examples on the Web

Growing shares of adults no longer expect to have children or own a home, either by choice or due to the prohibitive cost of raising kids and homeownership. —Allie Volpe, Vox, 5 Sep. 2024

Because the Airwrap has a prohibitive price point, cost is the most likely motivation to opt for a dupe. —Claire Sullivan, WWD, 17 July 2024

More than that, the cost of moving data from cloud to cloud can be prohibitive. —Matt Kimball, Forbes, 11 Sep. 2024

For a region living on a median household income of roughly $42,000 per year these costs can be prohibitive. —Brandon Kapelow, NPR, 10 Sep. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

prohibitive

adjective

pro·​hib·​i·​tive prō-ˈhib-ət-iv 

: likely to discourage use or purchase

prohibitive prices

prohibitively adverb