1
as in restraint
the checking of one's true feelings and impulses when dealing with others
in civilized society people do not just say or do whatever they feel like—they exercise some constraint
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in restriction
something that limits one's freedom of action or choice
put legal constraints on the board's activities
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in pressure
the use of power to impose one's will on another
parental constraint can take several different forms, including a denial of the approval that children usually seek from their parents
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of constraint
That piece, Parker said, is meant to symbolize the constraints imposed on Black men.
—
Raisa Habersham, Miami Herald, 19 June 2025
The third category encompasses those people who have occupational exposure or socioeconomic constraints that increase their exposure to heat.
—Katia Hetter, CNN Money, 19 June 2025
The Chinese economy is buffeted by multiple challenges that could keep growth rates down, such as a real estate crisis, high local debt, and increasing constraints on its market access to the West.
—Ashley J. Tellis, Foreign Affairs, 17 June 2025
The long-term impact of the aprons is not yet known for certain, given how new the current CBA is, but other teams have navigated similar constraints in the short term.
—Josh Robbins, New York Times, 16 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for constraint
Raisa Habersham, Miami Herald, 19 June 2025
The third category encompasses those people who have occupational exposure or socioeconomic constraints that increase their exposure to heat.
—Katia Hetter, CNN Money, 19 June 2025
The Chinese economy is buffeted by multiple challenges that could keep growth rates down, such as a real estate crisis, high local debt, and increasing constraints on its market access to the West.
—Ashley J. Tellis, Foreign Affairs, 17 June 2025
The long-term impact of the aprons is not yet known for certain, given how new the current CBA is, but other teams have navigated similar constraints in the short term.
—Josh Robbins, New York Times, 16 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for constraint
Recent Examples of Synonyms for constraint
Noun
-
Some voices, such as Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, have urged restraint against rushing to defer to Israel’s efforts—putting leading leftists in an odd confluence with folks like Carlson and former Trump counselor Steve Bannon.—
Philip Elliott,
Time,
17 June 2025
-
While members called for restraint and diplomacy, divisions remain.—
Amir Daftari,
MSNBC Newsweek,
16 June 2025
Noun
-
In April, the Trump administration implemented new regulations that blocked sales of Nvidia’s H20 AI chip, which had been designed to comply with earlier restrictions.—
Lee Ying Shan,
CNBC,
26 June 2025
-
Perhaps wary of the privacy implications, Google rolled out its Find Hub network (previously Find My Device) with harsh restrictions on where device finding would work.—
ArsTechnica,
ArsTechnica,
25 June 2025
Noun
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China is planning to conduct an in-flight escape test at maximum dynamic pressure later this year.—
ArsTechnica,
ArsTechnica,
20 June 2025
-
In recent weeks, his deputy chief of staff, Stephen Miller, has put pressure on the department to increase daily arrests to 3,000 per day.—
Dan Gooding
Gabe Whisnant,
MSNBC Newsweek,
20 June 2025
Noun
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This kind of discipline builds clarity, momentum and trust.—
Expert Panel®,
Forbes.com,
24 June 2025
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The prompt-a-thon process reframes prompting as a high-impact diagnostic and design discipline—engineered for fast, actionable insight.—
Eleanor Pringle,
Fortune,
23 June 2025
Noun
-
This protection mechanism has clear limitations, though.—
Kara Dennison,
Forbes.com,
19 June 2025
-
The study also hasn’t yet been peer-reviewed and has some limitations in its design.—
Brian Mastroianni,
Health,
19 June 2025
Noun
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This film left us thinking about big topics like truth, persuasion, and compulsion, positioning us alongside the filmmaker and leading us to want to talk and think about this film for hours.—
Matthew Carey,
Deadline,
26 May 2025
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In response, Sarah’s emotional state swings between consternation and compulsion as her solitary writer’s retreat morphs into a poolside war of wills between stuffy dame and slightly unhinged French gamine.—
Gráinne O'Hara Belluomo,
Footwear News,
26 May 2025
Noun
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The following testimony, my own, is just one example of the level of repression this couple is inflicting on the entire nation, as well as on citizens from other countries.—
Juan Sebastián Chamarro,
National Review,
8 June 2025
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Two of the least powerful groups threatened by the current climate of repression are public school teachers and their students, children who may never even realize what they have been kept from learning.—
Jane S. Smith,
Chicago Tribune,
6 June 2025
Noun
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For how much their environment (interactions with people) impacted them, men showed more inhibition than women.—
Dr. Diane Hamilton,
Forbes.com,
9 June 2025
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Its ability to lower inhibitions and amplify emotions can turn minor arguments into serious, sometimes dangerous conflicts.—
Tribune Content Agency,
Mercury News,
29 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Constraint.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/constraint. Accessed 30 Jun. 2025.
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