<p>In an effort to prevent inadvertent violation of election rules, the city has forbidden candidates from the posting of signs at polling places.
D. the city has forbidden candidates from having posted signs
E. the city has forbidden candidates to post signs</p>
<p>It says the correct answer is E. Isn't "forbidden from" an idiom?</p>
<p>Isn’t “forbidden from” an idiom?</p>
<p>What you are referring to is the colloquial usage of the idiom, which doesn’t work on the SAT’s…If you replaced the word forbidden with another word, lets say, not allowed, then the whole incorrect usage becomes clear. </p>
<p>-“the city has not allowed candidates from the posting of signs”----That doesn’t make any sense.
In letter choice E, if you replaced forbidden with not allowed, then it makes much more sense. “the city has not allowed candidates to post signs”—This sounds relatively better. Thus, its E.</p>
<p>No. Why would it be? It is a verb with a preposition following it. Even if it was an idiom, that doesn’t mean you can’t say “forbidden to.” These are real words and real prepositions. You forbid an action. “to post signs” is an action. You attach a noun and you get “[forbid] candidates to post signs.” Look up the word “from.” One of the many definitions of the word is “Used to indicate separation, removal, or exclusion.” Therefore, “to forbid someone from doing something” would make sense. Don’t confuse times where you utilize an idiom with times where you simply define words and vice-versa</p>
<p>therefore both “forbid from” and “forbid to” are correct. The fragments with “from” are wrong simply because they sound awkward and unnecessary</p>