adj ·5 syllables ·Uncommon ·Advanced level

Definitions

Adjective

1. 1
   That inhibits.

   "the inhibitory action of the pneumogastric on the respiratory center"

2. 2
   Of, or relating to an inhibitor.

Adjective

1. 1
   restrictive of action wordnet

Synonyms

All synonyms

exclusiveforbiddinginhibitiveinhibitivepreclusivepreventive

Antonyms

All antonyms

excitatory

Example

More examples

"Alcohol muddled part of the man's brain that usually handles inhibitory actions."

Etymology

From late 15th century (early modern English). Formed as inhibit + -ory or adapted from Medieval Latin inhibitōrius and Middle French inhibitoire.

Related phrases

cross-inhibitoryinhibitory controlinhibitory fibreinhibitory nerveinhibitory obsessioninhibitory postsynaptic currentinhibitory postsynaptic potentialinhibitory synapseinhibitory-motorminimum inhibitory concentration

Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.