restrain
Americanverb
-
to hold (someone) back from some action, esp by force
-
to deprive (someone) of liberty, as by imprisonment
-
to limit or restrict
Related Words
See check 1.
Other Word Forms
- overrestrain verb (used with object)
- prerestrain verb (used with object)
- restrainability noun
- restrainable adjective
- restrainingly adverb
- unrestrainable adjective
Etymology
Origin of restrain
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English restreynen, from Middle French restreindre, from Latin restringere “to bind back, bind fast”; equivalent to re- + strain 1
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
In this masterwork, as in “The Invention of Love” and “The Real Thing,” Mr. Stoppard’s literary brilliance shone mightily, but the restrained yet fathoms-deep feeling that animated his finest writing took precedence.
In “Floyd Collins,” Jeremy Jordan met the challenge of bringing vital life to a character on the verge of losing his—a cave explorer trapped underground—in director Tina Landau’s restrained but deeply moving production.
In addition to the prison sentence, Villafane was given an indefinite restraining order, barring him from contacting Mrs Norman and those close to her.
From BBC
The restrained growth means inflation outpaced house prices for a fourth straight month.
Police have been called multiple times to the charging stations, and Waymo at one point unsuccessfully tried to get a temporary restraining order against a resident who continued to protest against the stations.
From Los Angeles Times
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
