restraints

noun

plural of restraint
as in constraints
something that limits one's freedom of action or choice civil libertarians contend that the new laws place too many restraints on our constitutionally guaranteed rights

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of restraints State police said during the transport, the prisoner freed himself from his restraints and jumped out of the moving vehicle and fled north across the highway into a brush line. — Sara Tenenbaum, CBS News, 25 Aug. 2026 The shipping logjam at the canal continues to pile up, with the new restraints compounding prior traffic increases stemming from the disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz. — Glenn Taylor, Footwear News, 21 Aug. 2026 Staff had been using full bed rails as restraints on two residents without consent, a November 2021 complaint said. — Carol Marbin Miller, Miami Herald, 21 Aug. 2026 The employees weren’t wearing hair restraints, some dry foods weren’t labeled and there was a flea infestation underneath the mop sink. — Harriet Ramos, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 15 Aug. 2026 The two children did not have safety restraints at the time of the crash, the crash log said. — Kendrick Calfee, Kansas City Star, 13 Aug. 2026 The ride still started, and Mercer’s son then realized the safety restraints were not properly secured, according to the complaint. — Natalia Senanayake, PEOPLE, 10 Aug. 2026 Exchanges would also need to implement new trading restraints. — Dan Bernstein, Sportico.com, 7 Aug. 2026 The video quickly sparked a wave of reactions on social media, with many viewers expressing relief that the ride's safety restraints appeared to do their job despite the frightening ordeal. — Stepheny Price, FOXNews.com, 5 Aug. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for restraints
  1. constraints
  2. restrictions
  3. limitations
Noun
  • At coarser levels, CBS detects and matches SIFT features while using epipolar constraints to estimate horizontal and vertical disparities.
    — Jijo Malayil, Interesting Engineering, 27 Aug. 2026
  • The guidance could have been even higher if not for supply constraints, as the company grapples with shortages in parts like memory, which faces a global crunch due to AI buildouts.
    — Kif Leswing, CNBC, 27 Aug. 2026
Definition of constraints
Noun
  • Crews can practice firing procedures repeatedly while working within range restrictions that limit where live rockets can fly.
    — Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 29 Aug. 2026
  • Those restrictions formally sunset in 2022, but so far only Sony has done a major deal for cinemas, acquiring all 35 Alamo Drafthouse locations in 2024.
    — Sarah Whitten, CNBC, 28 Aug. 2026
Definition of restrictions
Noun
  • According to a statement by the team, the approach does have limitations.
    — Jijo Malayil, Interesting Engineering, 27 Aug. 2026
  • The authors also noted some study limitations – including potential unvalidated diagnoses and limited socioeconomic and lifestyle data – as well as the associations not proving causation.
    — Sara Moniuszko, USA Today, 26 Aug. 2026
Definition of limitations

Browse Nearby Words

restraint
restraints
restrengthen
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Restraints.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/restraints. Accessed 2 Sep. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of dissonant

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?

Why does English have so many silent letters?

7 Pairs of Commonly Confused Words
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

Even More Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Even More Bird Names that Sound Like Insults (and Sometimes Are)

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
skateboard-dog-hat
Wordmaxxing Slang Quiz Give your vocabulary a glow up by getting sendy w...
See All