restraint
Americannoun
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a restraining action or influence.
freedom from restraint.
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Sometimes restraints. a means of or device for restraining, as a harness for the body.
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the act of restraining, holding back, controlling, or checking.
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the state or fact of being restrained; restrained; deprivation of liberty; confinement.
- Synonyms:
- incarceration, imprisonment, restriction, circumscription
- Antonyms:
- liberty
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constraint or reserve in feelings, behavior, etc.
noun
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the ability to control or moderate one's impulses, passions, etc
to show restraint
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the act of restraining or the state of being restrained
-
something that restrains; restriction
Other Word Forms
- overrestraint noun
- prerestraint noun
Etymology
Origin of restraint
1350–1400; Middle English restreinte < Middle French restrainte, noun use of feminine past participle of restraindre to restrain
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.
UN officials, who are urging restraint on both sides, say the upsurge in hostilities has resulted in at least six health facilities reportedly being impacted in Afghanistan since late February.
From BBC
"I urge parties to de-escalate, exercise maximum restraint & respect international law, including the protection of civilians and civilian objects such as hospitals," he posted on X.
From Barron's
In Streisand’s 2023 memoir, “My Name Is Barbra,” she wrote that “Like the greatest movie stars, Bob understands the power of restraint.”
From Los Angeles Times
The Church Committee recommended, and Congress subsequently enacted, dozens of sweeping reforms to foreign intelligence collection activities, as well as restraints on future efforts by the U.S. government to assassinate people.
From Salon
The girl’s name comes from carpe diem, as in Kenna’s vow to seize the child she never got to hold, but the script has the restraint not to make a big standing-on-a-desk speech about that.
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.
