restrain
Americanverb (used with object)
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restrains,
present (3rd person singular)
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restrained,
past participle, past
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restraining
present participle
verb
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to hold (someone) back from some action, esp by force
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to deprive (someone) of liberty, as by imprisonment
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to limit or restrict
Synonym Usage
See check 1.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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restrainabilitynoun
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overrestrainverb (used with object)
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prerestrainverb (used with object)
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restrainableadjective
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unrestrainableadjective
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restraininglyadverb
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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restrainsimple
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restrainssimple
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have restrainedperfect
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has restrainedperfect
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am restrainingprogressive
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are restrainingprogressive
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is restrainingprogressive
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have been restrainingperfect progressive
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has been restrainingperfect progressive
Past
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restrainedsimple
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had restrainedperfect
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was restrainingprogressive
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were restrainingprogressive
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had been restrainingperfect progressive
Future
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
Explanation
Restrain means to hold yourself back, which is exactly what you'd have to do if, after weeks of dieting, you found yourself face to face with a dessert case filled with pies, cakes, and cookies. Restrain can also mean to restrict or hold back someone else, to prevent someone from doing what they're intending to do. Prison guards have to restrain a prisoner who is trying to attack one of his fellow inmates. That prisoner might even be put in handcuffs — a kind of restraint. You can restrain yourself, for example if you're watching a Broadway show and suddenly feel the urge to sing along. Your fellow audience members would be grateful for your restraint, especially if you've got a terrible voice.
Vocabulary lists containing restrain
List 10
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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.
See Examples For:
Before the 2023 study, Leng and colleagues had found that Menin helps restrain inflammation in the hypothalamus.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 18, 2026
Solicitor Gen. D. John Sauer described the new rules as “modest measures that will help prevent and restrain potential gross abuses of the mails to perpetrate a fraud on the Nation.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 14, 2026
Humanitarianism didn’t restrain Ms. Rodrigues-Birkett while celebrating 40 years of Guyanese diplomatic relations with Cuba.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 31, 2026
Carmakers have responded by offering other incentives and trying to restrain price increases.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 4, 2026
Sansa always felt safer when Cersei was there to restrain her son.
From "A Clash of Kings" by George R.R. Martin
Where other filmmakers would painstakingly elucidate every thematic detail to make their silly popcorn movie “say something,” Mitchell restrains himself.
From Salon ● Aug. 20, 2026
Ultimately, the goal is growth that is less dependent on leverage combined with regulation that restrains excess without choking activity.
From MarketWatch ● Apr. 8, 2026
It is now at 2%, close to the neutral level at which it neither restrains nor stimulates the economy.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 10, 2026
More aggressive fine print restrains other follies like the bond portfolio mismatches that undid California-based Silicon Valley Bank two years ago, says Davide Oneglia, director of European and global macro at TS Lombard.
From Barron's ● Oct. 25, 2025
This restrains male aggression and enables humans selectively to control the herd’s procreation.
From "Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind" by Yuval Noah Harari
After gaining entry, he "intervened with the assistance of a cabin crew member and several passengers, and together they rescued the injured captain and restrained the suspect".
From Barron's ● Oct. 12, 2026
Pike, 50, continues to receive critical medical care and is being restrained at her hands and feet in her hospital bed, her lawyers said at the news conference after a court hearing on Wednesday.
From BBC ● Oct. 7, 2026
These countries are all competing in the new multiplayer tournament, no longer restrained by old traditions and systems, and no one power has hegemony, all being less formidable than they appear.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 4, 2026
Lucas could probably fill an entire museum with what he’s stored from his six “Star Wars” features, but he’s restrained himself to one gallery and one theme: vehicles.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 8, 2026
La Cadette was all over him with sympathy, Maman and Mitraillette a bit more restrained.
From "Code Name Verity" by Elizabeth Wein
US District Judge Jennifer Rochon issued a temporary restraining order, preventing the administration from creating or airing such ads for 14 days.
From Barron's ● Oct. 12, 2026
The latest courtroom clash comes after a temporary restraining order was granted against Seaver on Sept. 22.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 12, 2026
The office said the delay was the result of insufficient funding and challenges with coordinating between the many agencies responsible for the county’s restraining order system.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 7, 2026
Last month, Kelly issued a temporary restraining order requiring the administration to restore the outlets’ credentials, rejecting, at least at that stage, the administration’s national security rationale for yanking access.
From Salon ● Oct. 6, 2026
I’ve just finished my own stew and am barely restraining myself from licking the plate.
From "Dread Nation" by Justina Ireland
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.
