straitjacket

Or straight·jack·et

[streyt-jak-it]

noun

1. a garment made of strong material and designed to bind the arms, as of a violently disoriented person.

2. anything that severely confines, constricts, or hinders.

   Conventional attitudes can be a straitjacket, preventing original thinking.

verb (used with object)

1. to put in or as in a straitjacket.

   Her ambition was straitjacketed by her family.

straitjacket

/ ˈstreɪtˌdʒækɪt /

noun

1. Also called: straightjacket. a jacket made of strong canvas material with long sleeves for binding the arms of violent prisoners or mentally ill patients

2. a severe restriction or limitation

verb

1. (tr) to confine in or as if in a straitjacket

Word History and Origins

Origin of straitjacket¹

First recorded in 1805–15; strait + jacket

Example Sentences

“If there is any madman who wants war, he should be put in a straitjacket!”

Read more on Literature

He was seen as a deft negotiator of the centre ground, triangulating his way out of the straitjacket of traditional left-right politics.

Read more on BBC

He said the election's eligibility rules were a "straitjacket" that prevented "a true democratic presidential election being contested".

Read more on BBC

It makes the whole project less overwhelming — more a compass than a straitjacket.

Read more on Salon

Wilson said the album would be a “teenage symphony to God,” a piece of music so audacious it would unlock the straitjacket he felt was keeping pop music bland and predictable.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• ban 
• constraint 
• curb 
• embargo 
• limit 
• prohibition 
• reduction 
• restriction