Tapu

//ˈtɑːpuː// noun, verb

noun, verb ·Rare ·Advanced level

Definitions

Noun

1
Alternative form of taboo. New-Zealand, alt-of, alternative, countable, uncountable
"Spies were sent to test the Moriori’s mettle by violating tapu & despoiling holy sites."

Verb

1
Alternative form of taboo. New-Zealand, alt-of, alternative
"Tapuing seeds and fields are types of the English laws for protecting out-door property; women tapued to men is matrimony; tapuing sick persons is analogous to the quarantine orders against lepers, the plague and the yellow fever."

Synonyms

proscribed anathema ban banned bar bar out

Antonyms

Example

"Spies were sent to test the Moriori’s mettle by violating tapu & despoiling holy sites."

Etymology

Borrowed from Māori tapu. Doublet of kapu.

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