off-limits

[awf-lim-its, of-]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR off-limits ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

forbidden to be patronized, frequented, used, etc., by certain persons: The tavern is off-limits to soldiers.

Origin of off-limits

An Americanism dating back to 1950–55

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for off limits

restricted, banned, illegal, barred, illicit, contraband, prohibited, unthinkable, outlawed, embargo, restriction, proscription, exclusion, constraint, veto, injunction, taboo, prevention, refusal, prohibition

British Dictionary definitions for off limits

off limits

adjective (off-limits when prenominal)

not to be entered; out of bounds

adverb

in or into an area forbidden by regulations

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for off limits

off-limits

adj.

"forbidden," by 1881, U.S. military academies jargon, from off (adv.) + limit (n.). Earlier (1857) it was applied to cadets, etc., who were in violation of the limitations on their movement and behavior.