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:
Government caps on retail fuel prices and lower electricity tariffs helped restrain inflation, though core CPI rose 2.6% in July.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 3, 2026
Higher rates tend to depress economic growth and restrain inflation.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 31, 2026
“I’m trying to restrain from a forecast of what’s going to happen, as opposed to just reading and reacting,” Roberts said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 31, 2026
Pianese argued that the fact the two officers had to use pepper spray and needed the help of a civilian to restrain Fakir showed that the use of force had not been excessive.
From BBC ● Jul. 21, 2026
Gertrude put a hand on his arm to calm and restrain him.
From "Ophelia" by Lisa Klein
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
Russia’s central bank Friday lowered its key interest rate for a fifth straight meeting, but said it will continue to keep borrowing costs at a level that restrains activity.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 19, 2025
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
The order restrains the defendants from granting access to Treasury Department records containing personally identifiable or confidential information to special government employees, political appointees, and other employees from outside the department.
From BBC ● Feb. 8, 2025
Kat restrains my hand and stoops over him.
From "All Quiet on the Western Front: A Novel" by Erich Maria Remarque
Asked about her most recent comments during a ministerial visit on Wednesday, Swinney was characteristically restrained.
From BBC ● Aug. 6, 2026
Discovery are “temporarily enjoined and restrained from closing or consummating the transaction or taking any steps, directly or indirectly, to integrate or consolidate their operations pursuant to the transaction.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 20, 2026
That’s the most restrained reading in 5½ years.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 14, 2026
Kevin Maher from The Times, external said 54-year-old Johnson was "three decades too old to play Maui", with "his performance oddly lacklustre and restrained".
From BBC ● Jul. 10, 2026
The bears were curious, but restrained by their respect for Iorek Byrnison, and his for Lyra, and she put them out of her mind and sank again into the alethiometric trance.
From "The Golden Compass" by Philip Pullman
FlightAware has claimed Kalshi continues to solicit bets using its data and repeatedly invokes the FlightAware mark, which is why it is seeking a temporary restraining order and permanent injunction.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 11, 2026
Reality TV contestant Stephen Bear is back in prison after admitting breaching a restraining order that banned him from posting online about ex-partner Georgia Harrison.
From BBC ● Aug. 6, 2026
The push for a trial came after a California federal court granted a temporary restraining order stopping the deal from closing for four weeks.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 4, 2026
District Judge Araceli Martínez-Olguín issued a restraining order to temporarily halt the proceedings.
From Salon ● Aug. 1, 2026
Startling myself with my bold speech, I withdrew my hand from his and clasped it with my other hand, thus restraining myself.
From "Ophelia" by Lisa Klein
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.
