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
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in anathema
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of taboo
Lorraine Ali, Los Angeles Times, 31 May 2025
Once ensnared, victims are exposed to increasingly graphic, violent, hateful and taboo content.
—Miles Klee, Rolling Stone, 8 May 2025
Miriam Balanescu, IndieWire, 17 May 2025
Other countries have probed, sometimes painfully, the taboos of their own origin stories, says Sarmila Bose, an Indian author who published a controversial book in 2011 about Bangladesh’s liberation war.
—Simon Montlake, Christian Science Monitor, 16 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for taboo
Adjective
But there’s nothing that’s too taboo, because that’s what comedy is for.
—Lorraine Ali, Los Angeles Times, 31 May 2025
Once ensnared, victims are exposed to increasingly graphic, violent, hateful and taboo content.
—Miles Klee, Rolling Stone, 8 May 2025
Noun
Ultimately, the film hammers home that this klutzy, tactless new man in town is first and foremost a voyeur — which is where most of the taboo shattering comes in.
—Miriam Balanescu, IndieWire, 17 May 2025
Other countries have probed, sometimes painfully, the taboos of their own origin stories, says Sarmila Bose, an Indian author who published a controversial book in 2011 about Bangladesh’s liberation war.
—Simon Montlake, Christian Science Monitor, 16 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for taboo
Recent Examples of Synonyms for taboo
Adjective
-
Benny and the Forbidden Garden, a 28-page book conceptualized and written by high-schoolers on the Placer County Youth Commission, follows a bunny who starts school and encounters a forbidden garden lush with intoxicating flowers.—
Calista Oetama,
Sacbee.com,
16 June 2025
-
Her investigation reveals forbidden rituals and buried wartime secrets connected to a sealed cave, with supernatural forces closing in around her.—
Naman Ramachandran,
Variety,
15 May 2025
Noun
-
The plaintiffs separately argued that the regulation includes a prohibition not expressly contemplated in section 1313(v) — that is, the general prohibition of a substitution drawback for excise taxes paid on imports where the substituted exports were exempt from excise tax.—
Robert Goulder,
Forbes.com,
23 June 2025
-
The prohibition excludes drones operated by DHS, police, firefighters and commercial operators who obtain an airspace waiver.—
Michael McCann,
Sportico.com,
22 June 2025
Noun
-
Colossal’s functional species concept is anathema to the Endangered Species Act.—
Alex Erwin,
The Conversation,
6 June 2025
-
As for the state’s longer-term financial picture, the kind of deeper cuts Republicans espouse are anathema to Pritzker and the legislature’s Democratic supermajority.—
Dan Petrella,
Chicago Tribune,
2 June 2025
Adjective
-
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
-
For example, Customs and Border Protection in the United States maintains a list of prohibited and restricted items for anyone entering the US and links to other departments if permits are required.—
Erica Kasper,
WIRED,
21 Aug. 2024
Noun
-
But the Yankees’ last no-no in front of their home crowd remains David Cone’s perfect game against the Montreal Expos on July 18, 1999, at the old stadium.—
Peter Sblendorio,
New York Daily News,
21 June 2025
-
No Cutting or Damaging Plants That Are For Sale Breaking off pieces from intact plants that are for sale is a big no-no.—
Leanne Potts,
Better Homes & Gardens,
21 June 2025
Noun
-
Mansory’s latest improvement—or abomination, depending on your perspective—is a G-Wagen convertible with a livery inspired by the board game Monopoly.—
Erik Shilling,
Robb Report,
18 June 2025
-
Other leaders who show off tanks and missiles Trump stumbles up the stairs to Air Force One, stoking memory of Biden tripping video Musk and Trump's relationship: A timeline from campaign cash to 'disgusting abomination' Will Medicaid change under new bill?—
Kinsey Crowley,
USA Today,
12 June 2025
Noun
-
Unlike the precedented use of the IEEPA, presidents have been given a wide degree of latitude to legally justify sector-specific or nation-specific embargoes and regulations under Section 232, even if the logic behind such national security complaints remains wanting.—
Tiana Lowe Doescher,
The Washington Examiner,
6 June 2025
-
There is, of course, no mention of any embargo around the event, but that has to be a consideration.—
Ewan Spence,
Forbes.com,
2 June 2025
Noun
-
That's a perversion of the separation of powers and the role of an independent Justice Department.—
Ryan Lucas,
NPR,
19 May 2025
-
These opposition movements shared one common goal: exposing the fallacies of the communist perversion of truth.—
Andrew Nagorski,
Foreign Affairs,
30 Nov. 2012
Cite this Entry
“Taboo.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/taboo. Accessed 2 Jul. 2025.
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