Word: inhibit (verb)

Associations

Inhibit means to hold back or prevent something from happening. It often relates to stopping a process, action, or feeling.

• Example 1: "Some chemicals can inhibit the growth of plants." - Here, inhibit means to slow down or prevent growth.
• Example 2: "Fear can inhibit your ability to speak in public." - In this case, fear stops the person from speaking well.
• Example 3: "The new law will inhibit pollution in the river." - Inhibit means to restrict or limit pollution.

A well-known synonym for inhibit is "restrain." However, restrain often implies a physical limitation, while inhibit can refer to both physical and emotional limits.

Substitution

Some other words you can use instead of inhibit are "impede," "hinder," and "curtail."

• "Impede" suggests causing delay or obstruction without necessarily stopping completely.
• "Hinder" means to obstruct or make it difficult for something to happen.
• "Curtail" means to reduce something in extent or quantity, but not entirely stop it.

Deconstruction

Inhibit comes from the Latin root "inhibere," which means "to hold back."

• The prefix "in-" means "not" or "without."
• The root "habere" means "to have" or "to hold". So the word suggests the idea of not holding or restraining something.

Inquiry

• In what situations do you feel inhibited?
• Can you think of times when you have had to inhibit your emotions or actions?
• How do you think inhibiting something could be both good and bad?