prohibit

USAGE SUMMARY

'prohibit' is a perfectly acceptable word in written English.
It is a verb that means to forbid or to stop someone from doing something. You can use the word in any context when you wish to express the idea or concept of forbidding something from happening or from being used. Example sentence: The college strictly prohibits the consumption of alcohol on campus.

✓ Grammatically correct

News & Media

Formal & Business

Human-verified examples from authoritative sources

Exact Expressions

60 human-written examples

The protesters at "Safe Park" must remove their wooden sleeping pods after a federal judge told city attorneys that an injunction he issued previously did not prohibit them from clearing out the pods.

The Guardian

It would only take two small paragraphs to change our burden of proof and prohibit those with intellectual disabilities from being executed," Young said.

The Guardian

Let's revive the EJF's campaign to prohibit Uzbek cotton in our bank notes.

The Guardian

It urged the authorities to go further and prohibit employers from dealing with any fee-charging recruitment agencies in countries of origin.

The Guardian

The law would prohibit state and local laws that "substantially burden" the ability of people – including businesses and associations – to follow their religious beliefs.

The Guardian - Sport

But he dismissed an application to prohibit contact with all crown witnesses as some are members of Obeid's family.

The Guardian

"Additionally, the ABA not does support using the banking industry to block access to cash or prohibit the purchase of goods and services available to other Australians".

The Guardian

In Washington, where the conflict arises not from luxury skyscrapers but modest apartments and row-house pop-ups, the zoning commission voted in April on rules that would prohibit new shadows cast on neighbouring solar panels.

The Guardian

This spring, the city's zoning commission voted to approve new rules on additions, including one that would prohibit them from shading nearby solar panels.

The Guardian

Chile is one of only five countries worldwide to prohibit abortion in all instances.

The Guardian

"With this new policy, effective immediately, the justice department is taking an important step to prohibit federal agency adoptions of state and local seizures, except for public safety reasons," Holder said in a statement.

The Guardian

Expert writing Tips

Best practice

When using "prohibit", ensure the sentence clearly states who or what is being prohibited and the specific action or item being restricted.

Common error

Avoid using "prohibit" in casual conversation; opt for simpler terms like "ban" or "stop" for a more natural tone.

Linguistic Context

The primary grammatical function of "prohibit" is as a transitive verb. Ludwig examples show it takes a direct object, indicating what is being forbidden or disallowed. It directly impacts the object by imposing a restriction.

Expression frequency: Very common

Frequent in

News & Media

65%

Formal & Business

20%

Science

10%

Less common in

Academia

2%

Encyclopedias

1%

Wiki

2%

Ludwig's WRAP-UP

In summary, "prohibit" is a versatile verb that conveys the act of formally forbidding or disallowing something. According to Ludwig, it is grammatically sound and frequently used, primarily in formal contexts such as legal and news-related content. It's essential to maintain a formal tone when using "prohibit", reserving simpler alternatives like "ban" or "stop" for informal settings. "Prohibit" typically requires the preposition "from" when indicating what is being prevented. When a formal context is not requested you could use alternative such as "forbid", "ban", or "disallow".

More alternative expressions

Phrases that express similar concepts, ordered by semantic similarity:

forbid

Direct synonym, replaces "prohibit" with a more common term.

ban

Short, impactful synonym emphasizing prevention.

disallow

Formal synonym, suggests refusal of permission.

interdict

Legalistic synonym implying formal prohibition.

proscribe

Formal and often legal synonym, suggesting strong disapproval.

rule out

Informal synonym, means to exclude as a possibility.

preclude

Formal synonym, meaning to prevent something from happening.

veto

To reject or forbid especially by exercising a veto.

put a stop to

Idiomatic expression for preventing continuation.

block

Informal synonym, meaning to obstruct or prevent progress.

FAQs

How to use "prohibit" in a sentence?

You can use "prohibit" to indicate that something is forbidden or not allowed, as in "The law "prohibits" the sale of alcohol to minors".

What can I say instead of "prohibit"?

You can use alternatives like "forbid", "ban", or "disallow" depending on the context.

Which is correct, "prohibit from" or "prohibit to"?

The correct usage is "prohibit from", as in "The rules "prohibit from" smoking in the building."

What's the difference between "prohibit" and "prevent"?

"Prohibit" implies a formal forbidding, often by law, while "prevent" means to stop something from happening. For example, "The law "prohibits" parking here," versus "Rain "prevented" us from going to the beach."