1
as in binding
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
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in impeding
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 handcuffing
Cellphone video showed officers handcuffing and pressing him against an unmarked sedan, with his forehead bloodied.
—
Eduardo Cuevas, USA Today, 16 May 2026
Agents then discharged their weapons and pursued Allen, exchanging gunfire and later tackling and handcuffing him.
—Zach Lachance, The Washington Examiner, 26 Apr. 2026
After handcuffing Woods, authorities searched his pockets and found two white pills.
—R.j. Rico, Fortune, 3 Apr. 2026
The video sees one officer remove cash, a pair of AirPods, and pills from his pocket during the search before handcuffing him.
—Shania Russell, Entertainment Weekly, 2 Apr. 2026
After handcuffing Woods, authorities searched his pockets and found two white pills.
—R.j. Rico, Chicago Tribune, 2 Apr. 2026
Common Knowledge The right’s first instinct after the ruling was to treat it as another case of judges handcuffing a president who was trying to act decisively in the national interest.
—Newsweek Editors, MSNBC Newsweek, 31 Mar. 2026
While the juvenile was on his stomach, Officer Dugan allegedly used his espantoon on the back of the juvenile's neck, before handcuffing him and placing him in the patrol car.
—Adam Thompson, CBS News, 30 Mar. 2026
That means there’s no constitutional precedent for handcuffing the commander in chief as congressional Democrats demand.
—Betsy McCaughey, Boston Herald, 9 Mar. 2026
Eduardo Cuevas, USA Today, 16 May 2026
Agents then discharged their weapons and pursued Allen, exchanging gunfire and later tackling and handcuffing him.
—Zach Lachance, The Washington Examiner, 26 Apr. 2026
After handcuffing Woods, authorities searched his pockets and found two white pills.
—R.j. Rico, Fortune, 3 Apr. 2026
The video sees one officer remove cash, a pair of AirPods, and pills from his pocket during the search before handcuffing him.
—Shania Russell, Entertainment Weekly, 2 Apr. 2026
After handcuffing Woods, authorities searched his pockets and found two white pills.
—R.j. Rico, Chicago Tribune, 2 Apr. 2026
Common Knowledge The right’s first instinct after the ruling was to treat it as another case of judges handcuffing a president who was trying to act decisively in the national interest.
—Newsweek Editors, MSNBC Newsweek, 31 Mar. 2026
While the juvenile was on his stomach, Officer Dugan allegedly used his espantoon on the back of the juvenile's neck, before handcuffing him and placing him in the patrol car.
—Adam Thompson, CBS News, 30 Mar. 2026
That means there’s no constitutional precedent for handcuffing the commander in chief as congressional Democrats demand.
—Betsy McCaughey, Boston Herald, 9 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for handcuffing
Verb
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The fact that Graphite One is already engaged in binding offtake discussions suggests the company may be moving beyond the speculative stage and into genuine commercial negotiations, although no final agreements have yet been signed.—
Christopher McFadden,
Interesting Engineering,
31 May 2026
-
That shift interferes with toxin binding and reduces the venom’s effectiveness.—
Scott Travers,
Forbes.com,
31 May 2026
Verb
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The authorities also required journalists to obtain a permit to report on the outbreak, impeding their work.—
Justin Kabumba,
Los Angeles Times,
22 May 2026
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Advertisement More than 600 defendants were accused of assaulting or impeding law enforcement officers during the riot, and nearly 175 were accused of using dangerous or deadly weapons.—
Nik Popli,
Time,
19 May 2026
Verb
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Attendees enjoy live music, professional and instructional fly tying, casting clinics and demos.—
Laura Daily,
Denver Post,
3 June 2026
-
That would be their 7-foot-4 unicorn Victor Wembanyama, who is 8-for-11 in the clutch so far this postseason, including his game-tying 28-footer in overtime of Game 1 of the Western Conference finals.—
Lev Akabas,
Sportico.com,
3 June 2026
Verb
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Deep mistrust among some people in the town is hampering response efforts to the outbreak of the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola virus — for which there is no vaccine.—
Emmet Livingstone,
NPR,
28 May 2026
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Kojan, who has been involved in fighting previous Ebola outbreaks in central and western Africa and is president of the Alliance for International Medical Action, said deep mistrust within some local communities is hampering efforts to contain the virus.—
Tom Soufi Burridge,
ABC News,
28 May 2026
Verb
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Cages were originally for holding birds or other animals, and then, by extension, for confining and punishing humans.—
Harmeet Kaur,
CNN Money,
28 May 2026
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It’s made clear that the chief antagonist is Philip, who starts off by griping that Madeleine isn’t confining herself to her half of the suite.—
Owen Gleiberman,
Variety,
18 May 2026
Verb
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That is hindering efforts to stop the spread of the virus and track those at risk in an area already wracked by conflict and with poor health infrastructure, health officials said.—
Jennifer Rigby,
USA Today,
28 May 2026
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Teams become less thoughtful as members avoid sharing ideas to escape critique, hindering collective learning and experimentation.—
Benjamin Laker,
Forbes.com,
27 May 2026
Verb
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The Baltimore region has suffered too long from underinvestment in transit services — which is shackling economic growth, harming the environment and constraining quality of life for families.—
Brandon Scott,
Baltimore Sun,
25 Feb. 2026
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Men are often the ones in those ICE facilities who are shackling and chaining detainees.—
Anna Moeslein,
Glamour,
7 Feb. 2026
Verb
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The decision comes a year after 23-year-old Samson Allen appealed his guilty verdict of resisting and obstructing police.—
Rose Evans
Updated May 29,
Idaho Statesman,
29 May 2026
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Comey was first indicted last September by a federal grand jury in Virginia on one count of making a false statement and one count of obstructing a congressional proceeding in connection with his testimony before a Senate committee in September 2020.—
Josh Meyer,
USA Today,
28 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Handcuffing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/handcuffing. Accessed 4 Jun. 2026.
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