proscribe means to forbid or prohibit. It carries an Arena rating of 1773, earned across 9 head-to-head judged battles.
Among words judged in Lexicurio's Arena, proscribe ranks #2,282 of 17,138 for Most Incisive Words, #2,376 of 17,134 for Most Malleable Words, #2,677 of 17,126 for Most Elegant Words, #2,978 of 17,143 for Best Fossil-Poetry Words.
proscribe is pronounced /pɹəˈskɹaɪb/.
Why “proscribe” is a great word
To condemn or outlaw something, often officially, to declare it unacceptable and worthy of banishment. From Middle English proscriben, from Latin prōscrībō, from prō- (“before, in front of, publicly”) + scrībō (“to write”), meaning “to publish in writing, confiscate, outlaw,” first attested in English in the late 14th to early 15th century. Unlike “prescribe” (which orders a course to be followed) or the general “prohibit,” to “proscribe” is to publicly excise, to declare a person, practice, or idea anathema. It is the senator’s name chiseled into marble for citizens to spit upon, the banned book smoldering in the town square, and the quiet dread of finding one’s belongings on the curb—a public act of erasure that seeks to silence not merely the deed, but the very thought behind it.
Etymology
From Middle English proscriben, from Latin prōscrībō (“to proclaim, forbid, banish”).
verb
- To forbid or prohibit.e.g.“The law proscribes driving a car while intoxicated.”
- To denounce.e.g.“The word ‘ain't’ is proscribed by many authorities.”
- To banish or exclude.e.g.“Many Roman citizens were proscribed for taking part in rebellions.”
Definitions & examples from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 3.0).
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