strait

[streyt]

noun

1. (used with a singular verb),  Often straits. a narrow passage of water connecting two large bodies of water.

2. Often straits. a position of difficulty, distress, or need.

   Ill and penniless, he was in sad straits indeed.

   Synonyms: plight, predicament, dilemma, pinch, exigency
   Antonyms: ease

3. Archaic.,  a narrow passage or area.

4. an isthmus.

adjective

Archaic.

1. narrow.

   Strait is the gate.

2. affording little space; confined in area.

3. strict, as in requirements or principles.

strait

/ streɪt /

noun

1. (often plural)

   1. a narrow channel of the sea linking two larger areas of sea

   2. ( capital as part of a name )

      the Strait of Gibraltar

2. (often plural) a position of acute difficulty (often in the phrase in dire or desperate straits )

3. archaic,  a narrow place or passage

adjective

1. (of spaces, etc) affording little room

2. (of circumstances, etc) limiting or difficult

3. severe, strict, or scrupulous

strait

1. A narrow waterway joining two larger bodies of water. The Strait of Gibraltar, for example, connects the Mediterranean Sea with the Atlantic Ocean.

Other Word Forms

• straitly adverb
• straitness noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of strait¹

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English streit “narrow, a strait,” from Old French estreit “narrow, tight,” from Latin strictus, past participle of stringere “to tighten, bind”; strain ¹

Word History and Origins

Origin of strait¹

C13: from Old French estreit narrow, from Latin strictus constricted, from stringere to bind tightly

Synonym Study

See emergency.

Example Sentences

Storm-ravaged communities in western Jamaica were facing dire straits Sunday, days after record-setting Hurricane Melissa left towns demolished and at least 28 people dead across the island.

Read more on Barron's

Still, Wu said, those facing dire straits due to the shutdown should prioritize essential needs like their mortgage or rent over immediate credit preservation.

Read more on MarketWatch

The waste collection program had previously been heavily subsidized, to the tune of about $500,000 a day, which was no longer viable given the city’s financial straits.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

“People selling lots are in dire straits. They don’t care whether offers come from international buyers or not,” he said.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

With local nightlife in troubled straits after fires, inflation and ICE raids, South Pasadena’s Sid the Cat Auditorium is a self-funded bet that the local music scene can recover.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• predicament