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Prescribe or Proscribe?
Prescribe or Proscribe?
What is the difference between "prescribe" and "proscribe"?- "To prescribe" means to recommend or to authorize.
- The critic should describe and not prescribe.
(Playwright Eugene Ionesco)
(Here, "prescribe" means recommend.)
- In the future we might not prescribe drugs all the time. We might prescribe apps. (Inventor Daniel Kraft) ("Prescribe" is often used in a medical context, e.g., to prescribe antibiotics. It is commonly seen as a noun, e.g., a doctor's prescription.)
- "To proscribe" means to forbid.
- France has effectively proscribed religion from public life.
(Novelist Pankaj Mishra)
- They are members of a proscribed organization.


More about "Prescribe" and "Proscribe"
The words "prescribe" or "proscribe" sound similar, but their meanings are quite different.Prescribe
The verb "to prescribe" means to recommend or to authorize.Example sentences with "prescribe":
- I have prescribed you a course of antibiotics.
- The law prescribes a minimum of 10 years' incarceration for your offence.
Proscribe
The verb "to proscribe" means to forbid, to limit, or to banish.Example sentences with "proscribe":
- These photos are worthless. Such images are proscribed by law.
- Police have been tracking three members of the group, which was proscribed in the 1980s.
- Name one country that does not proscribe theft.
- These right- and left-wing groups are now proscribed organizations.
Interactive Exercise
Here are three randomly selected questions from a larger exercise, which can be edited, printed to create an exercise worksheet, or sent via email to friends or students.- Do you disagree with something on this page?
- Did you spot a typo?