prohibitive

adjective

pro·​hib·​i·​tive prō-ˈhi-bə-tiv 

prə-

1

: tending to prohibit or restrain

2

: tending to preclude use or purchase

prohibitive costs

3

: almost certain to perform as predicted

a prohibitive favorite

prohibitively adverb

prohibitiveness noun

Examples of prohibitive in a Sentence

the prohibitive cost of rent

Recent Examples on the Web

China exports heavily to U.S. markets, and Trump’s tariffs on China—which rose to a prohibitive 145% before being temporarily lowered to 30%—left many Chinese and American businesses in a state of uncertainty. —Miranda Jeyaretnam, Time, 27 June 2025

While a growing number of listings sit idle in the United States' housing market, as buyers are kept on the sidelines by sky-high prices and prohibitive borrowing costs, multimillion-dollar homes are still going under contract in some of the most expensive parts of the country. —Giulia Carbonaro, MSNBC Newsweek, 26 June 2025

There are teams that prefer an open style, as The Athletic detailed here, but his wages could be prohibitive, so a loan looks most likely. 10. —Steve Madeley, New York Times, 17 June 2025

The researchers admit costs may be prohibitive for many – dairy digesters require significant investment, both in terms of money and upkeep. —Rosie McCall, Discover Magazine, 16 June 2025

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for prohibitive

• inhibitive

Kids Definition

prohibitive

adjective

pro·​hib·​i·​tive prō-ˈhib-ət-iv 

: likely to discourage use or purchase

prohibitive prices

prohibitively adverb