variants
also tabu
as in forbidden
that may not be permitted
asking a guest how much money he or she makes is strictly taboo because it's a rude question to ask a stranger
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
variants
also tabu
1
as in prohibition
Related Words
Dissimilar Words
2
as in anathema
Related Words
Dissimilar Words
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
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Recent Examples of taboo
Tina Sturdevant, New York Times, 10 May 2026
Dong wrote articles arguing for constitutional democracy, political reform and transparency in politics — views allowed to circulate freely in the past that are now taboo in China.
—ABC News, 8 May 2026
Sarah Davanzo, Rolling Stone, 11 May 2026
But Bain reveals there were challenges when the group returned home to South Korea, where LGBTQ+ issues and representation are still considered taboo.
—Laura Sirikul, Forbes.com, 9 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for taboo
Adjective
Now, pregnancy is becoming less taboo for top athletes.
—Tina Sturdevant, New York Times, 10 May 2026
Dong wrote articles arguing for constitutional democracy, political reform and transparency in politics — views allowed to circulate freely in the past that are now taboo in China.
—ABC News, 8 May 2026
Noun
Our team had intimate conversations with ChatGPT, regarded as taboo, which unlocked the insight that people want to be fully seen without being judged or penalized.
—Sarah Davanzo, Rolling Stone, 11 May 2026
But Bain reveals there were challenges when the group returned home to South Korea, where LGBTQ+ issues and representation are still considered taboo.
—Laura Sirikul, Forbes.com, 9 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for taboo
Recent Examples of Synonyms for taboo
Adjective
-
Less than an hour’s drive from the holiday markets, on the way to Salla and its forbidden frontier, hundreds of Finnish soldiers are training to repel any future Russian invasion.—
Liam Denning,
Bloomberg,
12 Mar. 2026
-
Women, whether secular or religious, remain forbidden to read, write or tell stories.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
5 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
For communities most affected by cannabis criminalization, the financial relief flowing to licensed operators represents a specific industry reform, not a broader resolution of prohibition’s legacy.—
Javier Hasse,
Forbes.com,
22 May 2026
-
The Senate bill included a temporary prohibition through 2030 rather than a permanent ban, which some conservative lawmakers supported.—
Claire Carter,
The Washington Examiner,
20 May 2026
Noun
-
But this truth is anathema in a culture where billionaires expect to live forever and encounters with disease are wars to be fought and won.—
Hannah Kerman,
STAT,
29 Apr. 2026
-
But the issue isn’t if tanking is an anathema to any moral sports fan.—
Dave Hyde,
Sun Sentinel,
27 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
There is, however, room for questions about where the line between prohibited and acceptable political involvement will fall in practice.—
BrieAnna J. Frank,
USA Today,
11 July 2025
-
The list of prohibited and restricted items, as found on the CBP website, includes alcohol, biological materials, firearms, food and produce such as fruits and vegetables, soil, wildlife, fish, and gold, among other items.—
Dan Perry,
Newsweek,
28 Feb. 2025
Noun
-
The Angels were able to break up the no-no in the bottom of the ninth when Adam Frazier singled.—
Ryan Gaydos,
FOXNews.com,
19 May 2026
-
Like chocolate, products that contain caffeine are a big no-no for animals of all sorts.—
Lauren Landers,
Better Homes & Gardens,
17 May 2026
Noun
-
No respectable woman would permit such an abomination.—
Carly Tagen-Dye,
PEOPLE,
12 May 2026
-
Civic spending in all but eight states testifies to the fact that the Lost Cause fantasy was not an aberration or an abomination, but the reality across the country.—
Horace D. Ballard,
Artforum,
22 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Three Americans died in the 1996 incident that led to sanctions and the codification of the trade embargo on Cuba that remains in place today.—
Nicole Fallert,
USA Today,
20 May 2026
-
But what if the embargo gets lifted tomorrow?—
Miami Herald Archives,
Miami Herald,
20 May 2026
Noun
-
More broadly, this same chain of logic turns the Voting Rights Act into a zombie law, a perversion of its intended purpose that now mostly protects white Americans from any attempts to break their disproportionate control of voting machinery.—
Vann R. Newkirk II,
The Atlantic,
2 May 2026
-
The Fair Districts law is a partisan perversion walking around in a phony non-partisan trenchcoat.—
Letters to the Editor,
The Orlando Sentinel,
28 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Taboo.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/taboo. Accessed 25 May. 2026.
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