How to say "taboo" in Japanese

• タブーCommon
  nounThe direct loanword for the general sense of taboo: a custom, subject, or practice that a society avoids or treats as forbidden. The default choice in talk about cultures, customs, and sensitive topics.
  その話はなしはここではタブーです。↗

  The topic is taboo here.
• 禁忌きんきCommon
  suru verb, transitive verb, no-adjectiveA formal word for a taboo: a prohibition rooted in religion, custom, or established rules. In medicine it also means a contraindication, something that must be avoided.
• 法度はっとCommon
  nounEssentially a word for a ban or prohibition, especially one formally imposed by authority; its 'taboo' gloss is secondary, and for the cultural sense of taboo it is seldom the word you want.
• 禁物きんもつJLPT N1approx.Common
  nounCovers the 'no-no' side of taboo: a specific thing or action to be carefully avoided in a given situation, the stuff of warnings and rules of thumb rather than deep social taboos.
  長ながい付き合つきあいにかけは禁物きんもつ。↗

  Short accounts make long friends.

Use 「タブー」 for the general cultural or social sense, 禁忌 for formal prohibitions rooted in religion, custom, or rules, 禁物 for practical no-nos in a given situation, and 法度 mainly for bans rather than taboos.

Usage comparisons are AI-assisted and cross-checked by multiple models; for study reference only

• タブーtaboo
• 禁忌きんきtaboo
• 法度はっとban
• 禁物きんもつthing that should be (carefully) avoided
• 禁戒きんかいprohibition (e.g. in Buddhism)
• ご法度ごはっとforbidden
• 忌みいみtaboo