no-no

American  

[noh-noh] / ˈnoʊˌnoʊ /

noun

Informal.

plural

no-nos, no-no's

1. anything that is forbidden or not advisable, as because of being improper or unsafe.

   If you want to lose weight, rich desserts are a no-no.

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Etymology

Origin of no-no

1940–45, reduplication of no ¹

Example Sentences

The biggest no-no: Uploading documents with personal information into a publicly available AI tool.

From MarketWatch

That was a polar bear no-no, but they didn’t have a choice.

From Literature

“Natural light is the best. I can’t do a dark house. The no-no of no-nos is bad floor plan and flow, and not enough natural light.”

From MarketWatch

“The thing not to do? Don’t be insipid. A little jack lantern on the table — that’s not much of a Halloween gesture. I think you have to sort of go all out,” Stewart told Vogue last year when asked about her biggest Halloween no-no.

From Salon

Telling shoppers their goods are only worth a fraction of what they originally paid for them is also a no-no for brands.

From The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• check
• condition
• constraint
• control
• curb
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• regulation
• restraint
• rule
• stipulation
• stricture