proscriptive

[proh-skrip-tiv]

adjective

1. involving, imposing, or defining limits or prohibitions.

   We want the guidelines to be useful, broadly applicable, and not overly proscriptive and narrow.

   Rather than a proscriptive diet, in which the patient is limited to eating certain foods and measured portions, we encourage eating a wide range of foods in moderation.

Other Word Forms

• proscriptively adverb
• nonproscriptive adjective
• nonproscriptively adverb
• unproscriptive adjective
• unproscriptively adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of proscriptive¹

First recorded in 1740–50; from Latin prōscript-, stem of prōscrībere “to publish in writing” ( proscribe ( def. ) ) + -ive ( def. )

Example Sentences

In September the Party issued a new Code of Conduct for Religious Clergy on the Internet that is highly proscriptive.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

But the prohibitive costs and proscriptive laws sometimes mean there’s no choice at all.

Read more on Slate

Viewed this way, minding our p’s and q’s is less about proscriptive notions of correctness, and more about mindfulness, self-discovery and proper conduct.

Read more on Seattle Times

But it’s to Leaf’s credit that there’s nothing simplistic, and certainly nothing proscriptive, about how that closure takes place.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

But the move toward zero-emission vehicles represents a significant and aggressive step toward cutting greenhouse gases in the state — a step that one Washington Republican criticized as overly proscriptive.

Read more on Seattle Times

Related Words

• excessive 
• exorbitant 
• preposterous 
• steep