taboo
Definition from Wiktionary, a free dictionary
Contents |
[edit] English
[edit] Etymology
Tongan tapu (“‘prohibited’”). The word entered English around 1777.
[edit] Alternative spellings
[edit] Noun
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Singular |
Plural |
taboo (plural taboos)
- An inhibition or ban that results from social custom or emotional aversion.
- 1922, James Frazer, The Golden Bough:
- So among the Alfoors of the island of Buru it is taboo to mention the names of parents and parents-in-law, or even to speak of common objects by words which resemble these names in sound.
- 1922, James Frazer, The Golden Bough:
- (in Polynesia) Something which may not be used, approached or mentioned because it is sacred.
[edit] Translations
inhibition or ban
- The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables, removing any numbers. Numbers do not necessarily match those in definitions. See instructions at Help:How to check translations.
[edit] Adjective
taboo (comparative more taboo, superlative most taboo)
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Positive |
Comparative |
Superlative |
- Excluded or forbidden from use, approach or mention.
- Incest is a taboo subject in most soap operas.
[edit] Translations
excluded or forbidden from use, approach or mention
[edit] Verb
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Infinitive |
Third person singular |
Simple past |
Past participle |
Present participle |
to taboo (third-person singular simple present taboos, present participle tabooing, simple past and past participle tabooed)
[edit] Translations
to mark as taboo
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to ban
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to avoid
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