restrict
Americanverb (used with object)
-
restricts,
present (3rd person singular)
-
restricted,
past participle, past
-
restricting
present participle
verb
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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restricternoun
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restrictornoun
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derestrictverb (used with object)
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overrestrictverb (used with object)
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prerestrictverb (used with object)
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nonrestrictingadjective
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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restrictsimple
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restrictssimple
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have restrictedperfect
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has restrictedperfect
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am restrictingprogressive
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are restrictingprogressive
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is restrictingprogressive
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have been restrictingperfect progressive
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has been restrictingperfect progressive
Past
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restrictedsimple
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had restrictedperfect
-
was restrictingprogressive
-
were restrictingprogressive
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had been restrictingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of restrict
First recorded in 1525–35; from Latin restrictus “drawn back, tightened, bound, reserved,” adjective use of past participle of restringere “to bind back, bind fast”; see restrain
Explanation
To restrict is to limit. If you want to eat more healthily, you might restrict, or limit, yourself to eating only foods containing fruits and vegetables –- like carrot cake and apple pie. You'll often encounter different words related to restrict. A restriction is a law or rule, like the restriction against driving a car without a license. Something that is not permitted is restricted, and this word is often used to designate physical locations that are off limits to the public. You'll often see characters in movies break into restricted areas to obtain secret information.
Vocabulary lists containing restrict
Tier 2 Words for the SBAC ELA Items
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List 9
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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:
The order miss can partly be explained by soft September Class 8 truck demand and Volvo’s decision to restrict orders to keep production and order intake closely aligned amid ongoing inflationary pressures, Kempf adds.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 27, 2026
The program would restrict the price of qualifying homes, depending on the county where someone is trying to buy.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 24, 2026
Amazon sued Perplexity in November 2025, accusing the startup of using its Comet browser agent to covertly make purchases on its marketplace, and has also moved to restrict agents from Google and OpenAI.
From Barron's ● Oct. 21, 2026
The report is clear that precautionary steps taken to restrict visiting, as part of infection control, went too far.
From BBC ● Oct. 20, 2026
I don’t see why I should have to restrict myself, lots of people don’t.
From "The Girl on the Train" by Paula Hawkins
Health authorities continue to face shortages of resources, while insecurity caused by armed groups in Ituri province, the area hardest hit by the epidemic, restricts access to some communities.
From Barron's ● Oct. 23, 2026
A red tag marks a building as unsafe to enter, and a yellow tag restricts its use.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 10, 2026
In his view, the Fed may be adjusting its policy rate up toward a level that neither stimulates nor restricts economic growth.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 26, 2026
Ilya Espino de Marotta takes over as low water restricts shipping and drives auction prices to a record $5.3 million.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 8, 2026
The “no hair” theorem is of great practical importance, because it so greatly restricts the possible types of black holes.
From "A Brief History of Time: And Other Essays" by Stephen Hawking
On the other hand, stablecoin issuers are restricted under the Genius Act as to what they can invest in.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 27, 2026
The U.S. at one time purchased ingredients for energetics from Russia and China, but many of those exports have been restricted.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 27, 2026
As the cells squeezed through these restricted passages, their nuclei underwent visible deformation.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 24, 2026
A second version of that scheme, which ran from 2021 to 2023, restricted access to first-time buyers and applied regional-level price caps to the properties could be bought under the programme.
From BBC ● Oct. 23, 2026
The workers’ protective suits restricted their movement, and it was almost two hours before they reached the emergency response center.
From "Meltdown" by Deirdre Langeland
This layer helps limit unwanted chemical reactions between the lithium and the electrolyte while also restricting the growth of damaging lithium spikes.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 28, 2026
The city would have discretion over how exactly to do that, but one possibility is that L.A. could follow Paris’ lead in restricting tourist crowds around the Eiffel Tower.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 28, 2026
The way options are presented shapes decisions without restricting freedom.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 20, 2026
Other measures restricting the movement of young people and gatherings were introduced in cities such as Marseille, Bordeaux, Nice and Lyon in the south, as well as Lille and other towns in the north.
From BBC ● Oct. 20, 2026
Her success earned her an offer for a graduate fellowship, but she thought spending three years studying a single medieval poet sounded restricting.
From "A Deadly Wandering: A Mystery, a Landmark Investigation, and the Astonishing Science of Attention in the Digital Age" by Matt Richtel
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
