- a variation of taboo.
tabu
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
George notes that our word “taboo” is believed to derive from one of two Polynesian words: tapua, which means “menstruation,” or tabu, which means “apart.”
From The New Yorker ● Jan. 7, 2019
The tabu on horses and dogs thus renders unthinkable the consumption of a set of animals whose production is practically feasible and which are nutritionally not to be despised.
From Scientific American ● Sep. 6, 2013
Beneath the comic excessiveness of his meditations can be glimpsed some somber spiritual shadows: "Everything was out of the closet, every tabu broken, and still God kept His back turned, refusing to set limits."
From Time Magazine Archive
Entitled "Myths and Magic," it was a hodgepodge of everything from ancient Egyptian good-luck pieces and African fetishes to Solomon Island tabu sticks, Javanese puppets and Navajo sand paintings.
From Time Magazine Archive
His descendant, the tribal chief, is set within the pale of the tabu: his will may not be disobeyed, nor his body touched without incurring the wrath of the Unseen.
From The Fijians A Study of the Decay of Custom by Thomson, Basil
