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American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

pro·hib·it       (prō-hĭb'ĭt)  Pronunciation Key  tr.v.   pro·hib·it·ed, pro·hib·it·ing, pro·hib·its To forbid by authority: Smoking is prohibited in most theaters. See Synonyms at forbid. To prevent; preclude: Modesty prohibits me from saying what happened. [Middle English prohibiten, from Latin prohibēre, prohibit- : pro-, in front; see pro-1 + habēre, to hold; see ghabh- in Indo-European roots.]

WordNet - Cite This Source - Share This

prohibit

verb

command against; "I forbid you to call me late at night"; "Mother vetoed the trip to the chocolate store"; "Dad nixed our plans" [syn: forbid] [ant: allow]

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

Prohibit

Pro*hib"it\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Prohibited; p. pr. & vb. n. Prohibiting.] [L. prohibitus, p. p. of prohibere to prohibit; pro before, forth + habere to have, hold. See Habit.]

1. To forbid by authority; to interdict; as, God prohibited Adam from eating of the fruit of a certain tree; we prohibit a person from doing a thing, and also the doing of the thing; as, the law prohibits men from stealing, or it prohibits stealing.

Note: Prohibit was formerly followed by to with the infinitive, but is now commonly followed by from with the verbal noun in -ing.

2. To hinder; to debar; to prevent; to preclude.

Gates of burning adamant, Barred over us, prohibit all egress. --Milton.

Syn: To forbid; interdict; debar; prevent; hinder.

Usage: Prohibit, Forbid. To forbid is Anglo-Saxon, and is more familiar; to prohibit is Latin, and is more formal or official. A parent forbids his child to be out late at night; he prohibits his intercourse with the profane and vicious.