Ways to express prohibitions


I've been learning Japanese for a few days and there is one thing that I want
to know:

How is "forbids" expressed on signs in Japan? And how in formal texts?

I suggest that the form "[x]は きんし です。" is more colloquial and that in signs
and in formal text there is the form "いけません" (= it is forbidden to...).

You can, if you want, make examples (e.g. for signs: Smoking forbidden ...; or
formal texts...)




Even though I am not entirely sure what exactly you are trying to ask, I will
somehow manage to talk about the things that I feel might be of interest to
Japanesse-learners.

With Japanese signs --- any signs really, including those asking you not to do
something --- things happen that do not happen with signs in other languages.
That is regarding how the message should be written. Specifically, which ones
of the three writing systems we should use.

For instance, kids under 10 or so could not read the following sign at the
beach prohibiting swimming. It says 「[遊泳禁止]{ゆうえいきんし} [石巻市]{いしのまきし}」 meaning
"Swimming Prohibited. The City of Ishinomaki"

![enter image description here](https://i.stack.imgur.com/f32kU.jpg)

You will often find another sign nearby saying something like 「ここでおよいではいけません」
= "You cannot swim here." in kana so that smaller kids could read it. What you
will NOT find, however, is a sign that says 「ゆうえいきんし」 because that still
requires a ceratin level of vocabulary to understand despite the use of no
kanji.

By far the most often-used phrase on signs to keep kids away is:

「よいこはここであそばない」 = "Good kids do not play here."

[http://image.search.yahoo.co.jp/search?ei=UTF-8&fr=top_lt3_sa&p=%E3%82%88%E3%81%84%E3%81%93%E3%81%AF%E3%81%93%E3%81%93%E3%81%A7%E3%81%82%E3%81%9D%E3%81%B0%E3%81%AA%E3%81%84](http://image.search.yahoo.co.jp/search?ei=UTF-8&fr=top_lt3_sa&p=%E3%82%88%E3%81%84%E3%81%93%E3%81%AF%E3%81%93%E3%81%93%E3%81%A7%E3%81%82%E3%81%9D%E3%81%B0%E3%81%AA%E3%81%84)




Even though I am not entirely sure what exactly you are trying to ask, I will
somehow manage to talk about the things that I feel might be of interest to
Japanesse-learners.

With Japanese signs --- any signs really, including those asking you not to do
something --- things happen that do not happen with signs in other languages.
That is regarding how the message should be written. Specifically, which ones
of the three writing systems we should use.

For instance, kids under 10 or so could not read the following sign at the
beach prohibiting swimming. It says 「[遊泳禁止]{ゆうえいきんし} [石巻市]{いしのまきし}」 meaning
"Swimming Prohibited. The City of Ishinomaki"

![enter image description here](https://i.stack.imgur.com/f32kU.jpg)

You will often find another sign nearby saying something like 「ここでおよいではいけません」
= "You cannot swim here." in kana so that smaller kids could read it. What you
will NOT find, however, is a sign that says 「ゆうえいきんし」 because that still
requires a ceratin level of vocabulary to understand despite the use of no
kanji.

By far the most often-used phrase on signs to keep kids away is:

「よいこはここであそばない」 = "Good kids do not play here."

[http://image.search.yahoo.co.jp/search?ei=UTF-8&fr=top_lt3_sa&p=%E3%82%88%E3%81%84%E3%81%93%E3%81%AF%E3%81%93%E3%81%93%E3%81%A7%E3%81%82%E3%81%9D%E3%81%B0%E3%81%AA%E3%81%84](http://image.search.yahoo.co.jp/search?ei=UTF-8&fr=top_lt3_sa&p=%E3%82%88%E3%81%84%E3%81%93%E3%81%AF%E3%81%93%E3%81%93%E3%81%A7%E3%81%82%E3%81%9D%E3%81%B0%E3%81%AA%E3%81%84)

