inhibit

Intermediatezipf 3.34

Pronunciation

/ɪnˈhɪbɪt/(in-HIB-it)

Part of speech

verbformal

Chinese

抑制；阻碍；使拘束

Definition

To prevent or slow down a process; to make someone feel self-conscious and unable to act naturally.

Word family

  • inhibition/ˌɪnhɪˈbɪʃən/(n)抑制/拘束
  • inhibitory/ɪnˈhɪbɪtəri/(adj)抑制性的
  • uninhibited/ˌʌnɪnˈhɪbɪtɪd/(adj)不受拘束的

Collocations

  • inhibit growth
  • inhibit development
  • socially inhibited
  • lose inhibitions

Examples

  1. 1.Anxiety can inhibit your performance in interviews. (hold back)
  2. 2.This chemical inhibits the enzyme responsible for the reaction. (science)
  3. 3.After a few drinks, she lost her inhibitions and danced freely. (social constraint)

Synonyms

  • restrain/rɪˈstreɪn/— hold back actively
  • suppress/səˈprɛs/— prevent from emerging
  • hinder/ˈhɪndə/— make difficult, less formal

Etymology

in- (in) + habere (to have/hold) — to hold back within