stranglehold

noun

stran·​gle·​hold ˈstraŋ-gəl-ˌhōld 

1

: an illegal wrestling hold by which one's opponent is choked

2

: a force or influence that stops something from growing or developing

… opened three stores within a year and got a stranglehold on market share.

—Inc.

Examples of stranglehold in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Iran maintains its stranglehold on oil shipments through the Strait of Hormuz, causing gas prices to spike and threatening the global economy. —Christopher Cann, USA Today, 26 Mar. 2026

Current and former American officials say such an assault would be an attempt to collapse the regime's economy and break its stranglehold on global markets. —Alexander Smith, NBC news, 25 Mar. 2026

Still, Iran's stranglehold on the Strait of Hormuz remains in place. —Michelle Stoddart, ABC News, 23 Mar. 2026

Iran has escalated attacks on its Gulf neighbors since Israel bombed its massive South Pars offshore natural gas field, while keeping a stranglehold on shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, a strategic waterway through which a fifth of the world's oil and other critical goods are transported. —Arkansas Online, 21 Mar. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1893, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for stranglehold

• copyhold
• decontrolled
• hundredfold
• manifold
• marigold
• oversold
• petioled
• sevenfold
• subthreshold
• thousandfold
• uncontrolled
• ahold

Kids Definition

stranglehold

noun

stran·​gle·​hold ˈstraŋ-gəl-ˌhōld 

1

: an illegal wrestling hold by which one's opponent is choked

2

: a force or influence that chokes or blocks freedom of development or expression