manacle

[man-uh-kuh l]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR manacle ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a shackle for the hand; handcuff.

Usually manacles. restraints; checks.

verb (used with object), man·a·cled, man·a·cling.

to handcuff; fetter.

to hamper; restrain: He was manacled by his inhibitions.

Origin of manacle

1275–1325; Middle English, variant of manicle < Middle French: handcuff < Latin manicula small hand, handle of a plow. See manus, -i-, -cle¹

Related formsun·man·a·cled, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for manacle

fetter, chain, bracelet, shackle, iron, bond, pinion

Examples from the Web for manacle

Contemporary Examples of manacle

Yet Romney happily slid his leg into this manacle, slammed down the padlock, and threw the key into the river.
Michael Tomasky: Obama’s High-Stakes Gamble on Gay Marriage
Michael Tomasky
May 10, 2012

Historical Examples of manacle

As yet, my hand has not known the manacle, nor my feet the gyves!
The Pirate and The Three Cutters
Frederick Marryat
And, remember, if it becomes necessary, I can activate the manacle.
The Players
Everett B. Cole
In manacle and manumission we read the story of human slavery and freedom.
The World I Live In
Helen Keller
He came over and looked at the manacle about my leg and shook his head.
The Clue of the Twisted Candle
Edgar Wallace
She then took the key of the manacle out of her dress, and released me.
The Privateersman
Frederick Marryat

British Dictionary definitions for manacle

manacle

noun

(usually plural) a shackle, handcuff, or fetter, used to secure the hands of a prisoner, convict, etc

verb (tr)

to put manacles on

to confine or constrain

Word Origin for manacle

C14: via Old French from Latin manicula, diminutive of manus hand

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for manacle

mid-14c., "a fetter for the hand," from Old French manicle "manacles, handcuffs; bracelet; armor for the hands," from Latin manicula "handle," literally "little hand," diminutive of manicae "long sleeves of a tunic, gloves; armlets, gauntlets; handcuffs, manacles," from manus "hand" (see manual (adj.)). Related: Manacles.

In every cry of every man,
In every infant's cry of fear,
In every voice, in every ban,
The mind-forged manacles I hear

[Blake, "Songs of Experience"]

c.1300, "to fetter with manacles," from manacle (n.). Related: Manacled; manacling.