bridle

American  

[brahyd-l] / ˈbraɪd l /

noun

• bridles
  plural

1. part of the tack or harness of a horse, consisting usually of a headstall, bit, and reins.

2. anything that restrains or curbs.

   His common sense is a bridle to his quick temper.

   Synonyms:

   check, governor

3. Machinery. a link, flange, or other attachment for limiting the movement of any part of a machine.

4. Nautical. a rope or chain secured at both ends to an object to be held, lifted, or towed, and itself held or lifted by a rope or chain secured at its center.

5. a raising up of the head, as in disdain.

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verb (used with object)

• bridles,
  present (3rd person singular)
• bridled,
  past participle,  past
• bridling
  present participle

1. to put a bridle on.

2. to control or hold back; restrain; curb.

   Synonyms:

   limit, restrict, inhibit, constrain, govern, check

verb (used without object)

• bridles,
  present (3rd person singular)
• bridled,
  past participle,  past
• bridling
  present participle

1. to draw up the head and draw in the chin, as in disdain or resentment.

   Synonyms:

   bristle

bridle British  

/ ˈbraɪdəl /

noun

1. a headgear for a horse, etc, consisting of a series of buckled straps and a metal mouthpiece (bit) by which the animal is controlled through the reins

2. something that curbs or restrains; check

3. a Y-shaped cable, rope, or chain, used for holding, towing, etc

4. machinery a device by which the motion of a component is limited, often in the form of a linkage or flange

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verb

1. (tr) to put a bridle on (a horse, mule, etc)

2. (intr) (of a horse) to respond correctly to the pull of the reins

3. (tr) to restrain; curb

   he bridled his rage

4. to show anger, scorn, or indignation

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• bridler
  noun
• bridleless
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• bridles
  plural

Participles

• bridling
  present
• bridled
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• bridle
  simple
• bridles
  simple
• have bridled
  perfect
• has bridled
  perfect
• am bridling
  progressive
• are bridling
  progressive
• is bridling
  progressive
• have been bridling
  perfect progressive
• has been bridling
  perfect progressive

Past

• bridled
  simple
• had bridled
  perfect
• was bridling
  progressive
• were bridling
  progressive
• had been bridling
  perfect progressive

Future

• will bridle
  simple
• will have bridled
  perfect
• will be bridling
  progressive
• will have been bridling
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of bridle

before 900; Middle English bridel, Old English brīdel for brigdels, equivalent to brigd- (variant stem of bregdan to braid ( def. ) ) + -els noun suffix; akin to Dutch breidel, Old High German brittel

Explanation

When you're riding a horse and scream "Whoa!" to make it stop, you're pulling on the reins, which are attached to a thing called the bridle, the buckled straps around a horse's head that help you control its movements. The word bridle comes from the Old English bridel meaning "rein, curb, restraint," which is precisely what the purpose of a bridle is — to help restrain a horse's movements when necessary. You can bridle a horse, which is the act of putting a bridle on it. If you yank too hard on the reins, your horse might bridle, or take offense to your aggressiveness, just like you might bridle if someone insulted you.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

bridle bridles bridled bridling

But it makes little sense to think a law intended to bridle Wall Street also opened the gates to sports betting, Zaring said.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 24, 2026

Castro is accused of pulling on the bridle of one horse and grabbing the reins of another as mounted deputies moved toward a crowd of protesters to enforce dispersal orders on June 14.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 2, 2025

His first incarnation as Celtic manager rarely saw his team come off the bridle.

From BBC ● May 10, 2024

His eyes are full of tears as he holds the little riding crop in one hand and the bridle in the other.

From Slate ● Nov. 30, 2023

Samson immediately opened his jaws to bite one of Jack’s hands, but Jack quickly jerked them to the side, so Samson bit down on the flower bridle instead.

From "Half Upon a Time" by James Riley

She refers to Isaac as “Latin-X,” to his disgust, and bridles when Alan casually complains that a student objected when he said a movie was “lame.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 23, 2026

The handlers on the ground let go of the bridles and the cows suddenly shoot forward.

From Barron's ● Oct. 20, 2025

Think animal jewelry — bridles, straps and other harness parts adorned with eagle heads, rosettes, griffins, busts of Herakles, serpents and lions, often shaped from gold.

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 11, 2025

American freedom is not absolute; no American is free from the Constitution’s bridles.

From Slate ● Aug. 9, 2024

The only part I didn’t much enjoy was the endless cleaning of the tack—the saddles and bridles.

From "My Life with the Chimpanzees" by Jane Goodall

Blanche bridled at the suggestion, calling it “the most false statement I have ever heard in my life.”

From Salon ● Apr. 9, 2026

Though he bridled against the genteel expectations of his upbringing, he was popular and effortlessly debonair.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 21, 2025

And her son bridled at having to share personal information that Chavez needed in order to apply.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 19, 2023

His staff always bridled at the idea of him as an understudy or apprentice, pointing to his decades of achievement, of carving out a distinct role.

From BBC ● Sep. 18, 2022

I meet my sisters in front of Madoc’s stables, where silver-shod faerie horses are penned up beside enormous toads ready to be saddled and bridled and reindeer with broad antlers hung with bells.

From "The Cruel Prince" by Holly Black

Agency for International Development, some African governments are bridling at the conditions he has set for resuming funding to combat AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 31, 2026

In her autobiography, Mrs. Robertson recalled bridling at staying at home and her husband’s refusal to help around the house.

From Washington Post ● Apr. 20, 2022

In her autobiography, Dede Robertson recalled bridling at staying at home and her husband’s refusal to help around the house.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 20, 2022

In her autobiography, Robertson recalled bridling at staying at home and her husband’s refusal to help around the house.

From Seattle Times ● Apr. 19, 2022

Yossarian demanded, rising up slowly on one elbow with bridling hostility.

From "Catch-22" by Joseph Heller