1
as in restraint
the power to control one's actions, impulses, or emotions
toddlers have very little self-control
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in discipline
the checking of one's true feelings and impulses when dealing with others
she could be passionate and intense, but generally exercised steely self-control in the company of strangers
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of self-control
He's obviously come a long way in terms of drinking and self-control from that night.
—
Maureen Lee Lenker, EW.com, 29 Apr. 2025
France is a culture of manners, of eloquence, of graceful behavior, as if life itself, from the grandly public to the intimately domestic, were essentially performative, requiring constant self-control.
—Richard Brody, New Yorker, 28 Apr. 2025
That’s because the amygdala, a part of the brain that processes feelings, and the prefrontal cortex, which is responsible for reasoning and self-control, may fall out of sync under these conditions.
—Nathalie Alonso, AFAR Media, 23 Apr. 2025
Executive function refers to critical mental processes like reaction time, recognizing emotions, memory, planning, and self-control.
—Sarah Bence, Verywell Health, 23 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for self-control
Maureen Lee Lenker, EW.com, 29 Apr. 2025
France is a culture of manners, of eloquence, of graceful behavior, as if life itself, from the grandly public to the intimately domestic, were essentially performative, requiring constant self-control.
—Richard Brody, New Yorker, 28 Apr. 2025
That’s because the amygdala, a part of the brain that processes feelings, and the prefrontal cortex, which is responsible for reasoning and self-control, may fall out of sync under these conditions.
—Nathalie Alonso, AFAR Media, 23 Apr. 2025
Executive function refers to critical mental processes like reaction time, recognizing emotions, memory, planning, and self-control.
—Sarah Bence, Verywell Health, 23 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for self-control
Recent Examples of Synonyms for self-control
Noun
-
Still, progressive proponents of the ERA demanded that some legal loophole must exist to circumvent those restraints.—
Sarah Bedford,
The Washington Examiner,
8 June 2025
-
Intense hostility all around means that for now, neither Russia nor China is even willing to sit down to discuss nuclear restraints, in treaty form or otherwise.—
Matthew Bunn,
The Conversation,
6 June 2025
Noun
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Such defensive discipline and intelligent street-smarts have meant that Inzaghi’s side have trailed for just 16 minutes across the whole Champions League campaign — just one per cent of their total time on the pitch.—
Mark Carey,
New York Times,
31 May 2025
-
The combination of meditation and art gave me both discipline and expression.—
Shekar Natarajan,
Forbes.com,
30 May 2025
Noun
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Practices like meditation or simply taking a moment to pause before switching tasks, help strengthen networks connected to the prefrontal cortex—the region that is notably involved in planning, inhibition and sustained attention.—
Lauryn Higgins,
Flow Space,
27 May 2025
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This allows hurricanes to form and sustain longer without inhibition or limiting.—
Julia Jacobo,
ABC News,
22 May 2025
Noun
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This victory is an unexpected and powerful blow to the machinery of repression in the Islamic Republic.—
Nick Vivarelli,
Variety,
25 May 2025
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Both movements emerged from similar circumstances and serve as reactions to censorship, repression, and the ideological constraints of the Islamic Republic.—
Ali Farahmand,
IndieWire,
23 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Self-control.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/self-control. Accessed 14 Jun. 2025.
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