as in helpless
unable to act or achieve one's purpose
handcuffed by a dearth of funding, the preservation society can do little but stand by as these historic structures deteriorate
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in bound
to confine or restrain with or as if with chains
wanted to take the trip, but was handcuffed by her responsibility to watch her ailing father
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in hampered
to create difficulty for the work or activity of
the fear that the new mandatory, standardized tests will handcuff the state's teachers, who will have to specifically tailor their lesson plans for the test
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of handcuffed
CBS News, 6 May 2026
After the shooting, agents removed Hernández’s clothing and left him handcuffed and sitting naked on the side of the road, according to Kolasinski.
—Clara Harter, Los Angeles Times, 2 May 2026
The chase ended when a passerby stopped the suspect and McLaughlin handcuffed her.
—Rocco Parascandola, New York Daily News, 1 May 2026
Two days after the alleged assassin, believed to be a left-wing activist, was handcuffed at the annual White House Correspondents’ Association dinner, the Wall Street Journal created a graph visualizing the CSIS study’s findings.
—Mia Cathell, The Washington Examiner, 1 May 2026
After being handcuffed and taken to the juvenile detention center, another copy of the fake ID was located in Lindsey’s wallet.
—Andy Greder, Twin Cities, 1 May 2026
Others, like Bridgewater founder Ray Dalio, see the issue first cropping up in public spending, with programs being squeezed out by the interest payments the government is handcuffed into paying.
—Eleanor Pringle, Fortune, 29 Apr. 2026
He was then handcuffed and detained at the NYPD's 79th Precinct in Bed-Stuy and was ultimately charged.
—Amethyst Martinez, USA Today, 28 Apr. 2026
Trump also posted photographs of the suspect, believed to be Allen, shirtless and handcuffed, face down on the floor with officers surrounding him.
—Rebecca Schneid, Time, 27 Apr. 2026
Verb
Busch won it when his grounder up the middle leading off the 10th against Sam Moll (1-2) handcuffed shortstop Elly De La Cruz.
—CBS News, 6 May 2026
After the shooting, agents removed Hernández’s clothing and left him handcuffed and sitting naked on the side of the road, according to Kolasinski.
—Clara Harter, Los Angeles Times, 2 May 2026
The chase ended when a passerby stopped the suspect and McLaughlin handcuffed her.
—Rocco Parascandola, New York Daily News, 1 May 2026
Two days after the alleged assassin, believed to be a left-wing activist, was handcuffed at the annual White House Correspondents’ Association dinner, the Wall Street Journal created a graph visualizing the CSIS study’s findings.
—Mia Cathell, The Washington Examiner, 1 May 2026
After being handcuffed and taken to the juvenile detention center, another copy of the fake ID was located in Lindsey’s wallet.
—Andy Greder, Twin Cities, 1 May 2026
Others, like Bridgewater founder Ray Dalio, see the issue first cropping up in public spending, with programs being squeezed out by the interest payments the government is handcuffed into paying.
—Eleanor Pringle, Fortune, 29 Apr. 2026
He was then handcuffed and detained at the NYPD's 79th Precinct in Bed-Stuy and was ultimately charged.
—Amethyst Martinez, USA Today, 28 Apr. 2026
Trump also posted photographs of the suspect, believed to be Allen, shirtless and handcuffed, face down on the floor with officers surrounding him.
—Rebecca Schneid, Time, 27 Apr. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for handcuffed
Adjective
-
Punk appeared helpless as Reigns picked him up.—
Ryan Gaydos,
FOXNews.com,
20 Apr. 2026
-
The show’s name referred to their self-identification as helpless babies overwhelmed by the pressures of modernity, comforted only by coating themselves in fancy serums and moisturizers to recreate the peaceful, placental insulation of the womb.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
9 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
The commission's website says the Sargasso Sea is a 2 million square mile open ocean ecosystem, bounded by the circulating currents of the North Atlantic Gyre, one of five sea gyres which are geographic rotating currents.—
Sarah Perkel,
USA Today,
4 May 2026
-
Its southern limit is largely bounded by Golden Triangle Boulevard east of Interstate 35W and Big Fossil Creek west of the interstate.—
Harrison Mantas,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
3 May 2026
Verb
-
The court issued a ruling that limits consideration of race in drawing voting maps — potentially a boon for Republicans, who have been hampered by the civil rights law in their attempt to redraw maps in Louisiana, Alabama and other states.—
Matthew Choi,
Washington Post,
30 Apr. 2026
-
Connor McDavid looked ordinary at best, clearly hampered by his injury.—
Shayna Goldman,
New York Times,
30 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
One of the bullets in Monday’s shooting hit the teen’s spine, leaving him paralyzed from the waist down, his mother said.—
Thomas Tracy,
New York Daily News,
30 Apr. 2026
-
The result is a paralyzed country where the most vulnerable populations.—
Sarah Moreno
Updated April 29,
Miami Herald,
29 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
The Going There author and Monahan tied the knot in 1989.—
Kimberlee Speakman,
PEOPLE,
1 May 2026
-
His 41 wins were tied for the third-most in franchise history by a coach in their first year with the team, and his 98 points tied a franchise record for most points accumulated by a coach in their first year.—
Garrett Behanna,
CBS News,
1 May 2026
Verb
-
The Catholic-Protestant divide impeded North American solidarity.—
Daniel Immerwahr,
New Yorker,
4 May 2026
-
GasBuddy expects that if the Strait of Hormuz remains blocked or significantly impeded through Memorial Day, the national average price of gas could surpass the all‑time record of $5 per gallon.—
Kelly McCarthy,
ABC News,
2 May 2026
Adjective
-
Based on the popular 1960s spy sitcom, this weak adaptation casts Steve Carell as a bumbling secret agent, with Hathaway as his more competent partner and developing love interest.—
Chris Feil,
Vulture,
1 May 2026
-
In particular, researchers experimentally demonstrated quadsqueezing, a complex fourth-order quantum interaction previously considered too weak to observe.—
Mrigakshi Dixit,
Interesting Engineering,
1 May 2026
Verb
-
Syrian authorities on Friday arrested Amjad Yousef, a former intelligence officer who appeared in a video leaked four years ago that appears to show him and his comrades executing dozens of blindfolded and shackled prisoners in the Damascus suburb of Tadamon during the civil war.—
Ghaith Alsayed,
Los Angeles Times,
26 Apr. 2026
-
Carvajal’s name was absent from the top of the January indictment unsealed on the morning Maduro arrived shackled in New York with Flores.—
Max Saltman,
CNN Money,
26 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Handcuffed.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/handcuffed. Accessed 7 May. 2026.
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