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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...)
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2014-08-10T13:42:56.143
18202
2018-12-30T22:55:13.113
2014-08-11T11:20:24.197
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question
word-choice
Ways to express prohibitions
禁止{きんし} can actually frequently be found on Japanese signs. 喫煙禁止{きつえんきんし} -
"No smoking" and 立入禁止{たちいりきんし} - "Do not enter" are common examples. Due to
the concise nature of this word (only two characters), it actually lends
itself quite nicely to prohibition signs. A Google image search of 禁止 will
actually yield nothing but prohibition signs.

As for expressing prohibition in a sentence, you are right in assuming that
いけません could be used. I'm still learning myself, but I'm fairly sure that it's
the most common way (of course including the variants いけない、ならない、etc.) - I
cannot comment on the usage of 禁止{きんし} to prohibit something in full
sentences, but my hunch is that it would sound very stiff and formal and - if
it is used at all - is not an option you should consider in general.
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2014-08-11T00:49:34.973
18205
2014-08-11T00:49:34.973
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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)
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2014-08-11T02:52:08.557
18206
2018-12-30T22:55:13.113
2020-06-17T08:18:27.500
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