stranglehold

[ strang-guh l-hohld ]

/ ˈstræŋ gəlˌhoʊld /

SEE SYNONYMS FOR stranglehold ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

Wrestling. an illegal hold by which an opponent's breath is choked off.

a restraining hold in which one person uses an arm to encircle the neck of another; a chokehold.

any force or influence that restricts the free actions or development of a person or thing; a stifling grip: to break the stranglehold of superstition.

Words nearby stranglehold

stranger, stranger rape, stranger's gallery, stranger, the, strangle, stranglehold, strangler, strangles, strangulate, strangulated hernia, strangulation

Origin of stranglehold

First recorded in 1890–95; strangle + hold¹

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Examples from the Web for stranglehold

The professors concluded that “abstinence-only programs have a stranglehold on sexuality education in Texas public schools.”
Gail Collins on Texas’s Abstinence Sex Education Problems|Gail Collins|June 4, 2012|DAILY BEAST
The agreement lessened the stranglehold India-Pakistan tensions had put on trade in the region for decades.
Richard Holbrooke's Last Mission in Afghanistan by David Rohde|David Rohde|November 26, 2011|DAILY BEAST
Galled by the stranglehold of the religious right, he has challenged the party to open itself up to young voters and new ideas.
The Next McCain?|Robert Gehrke|May 18, 2009|DAILY BEAST
He reached for the arm around his neck and began breaking it free from its stranglehold.
The Sky Is Falling|Lester del Rey

Mrs. Trapes, I've got a stranglehold on that idea, for it is rather brilliant.
The Definite Object|Jeffery Farnol
It gave them such a stranglehold––with the right sort of men––and Brace was the right sort.
At the Crossroads|Harriet T. Comstock
The Party manipulators had now got their stranglehold on the country.
Ireland Since Parnell|Daniel Desmond Sheehan
The smaller the group the tighter its stranglehold over your life and activities.
The Legacy of Greece|Various

British Dictionary definitions for stranglehold

stranglehold

/ (ˈstræŋɡəlˌhəʊld) /

noun

a wrestling hold in which a wrestler's arms are pressed against his opponent's windpipeSee also Japanese stranglehold

complete power or control over a person or situation

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

stranglehold

noun

Words related to stranglehold

Words nearby stranglehold

Origin of stranglehold

Examples from the Web for stranglehold

British Dictionary definitions for stranglehold

noun