constipated

[kon-stuh-pey-tid]

adjective

1. having a condition of the bowels in which the feces are dry and hardened and evacuation is difficult and infrequent.

   Most constipated people need more fluids and fiber.

2. slow-moving or immobilized, as by overregulation, backlogs, etc..

   Such an approach only adds to a bloated bureaucracy and constipated decision-making.

3. overly stiff, repressed, or conventional; uptight.

   She describes her husband as “emotionally constipated.”

constipated

/ ˈkɒnstɪˌpeɪtɪd /

adjective

1. suffering from constipation

2. subject to restriction or blockage in a flow of productive activity or creativity

Other Word Forms

• unconstipated adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of constipated¹

First recorded in 1540–50; constipat(e) ( def. ) + -ed ² ( def. )

Example Sentences

Here are some of the ways to prevent a child from becoming constipated:

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“It taught you to be a lot less constipated about having a bad idea or being made fun of,” he said of his time at Esquire.

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Ms Perea was 29 when she first visited her GP after feeling constipated and bloated.

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The tycoon, played with constipated entitlement by Guy Pearce, has the pastiche name Harrison Lee Van Buren.

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Funnily enough, though, his “Napoleon” might have actually benefited from a bit more fuss, a lot more political-historical insight and a less constipated visual style.

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