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
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
For Jones, doing his part meant observing, which led to at least four officers jumping on his back, handcuffing him, crushing his legs, and grinding his forehead into the frozen concrete.
—Evan Minsker, Rolling Stone, 7 Feb. 2026
The officer around the man's neck then moves his hands to assist the other two officers in handcuffing the man, and replaces his hands with his knee on the man's head and neck.
—Hayley Walker, NBC news, 14 Jan. 2026
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
For Jones, doing his part meant observing, which led to at least four officers jumping on his back, handcuffing him, crushing his legs, and grinding his forehead into the frozen concrete.
—Evan Minsker, Rolling Stone, 7 Feb. 2026
The officer around the man's neck then moves his hands to assist the other two officers in handcuffing the man, and replaces his hands with his knee on the man's head and neck.
—Hayley Walker, NBC news, 14 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for handcuffing
Verb
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Fearing the worst, the non-profit Ocracoke Foundation took out loans to buy the buildings and adjacent docks, then set a goal to have legally-binding historic preservation agreements put in place.—
Mark Price,
Charlotte Observer,
16 Apr. 2026
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City departments will be tasked with meeting many of the goals, and the City Council could adopt some of them as binding policy, Sutley said.—
Ian James,
Los Angeles Times,
16 Apr. 2026
Verb
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In January, Geren notified more than 50 of the 62 Democrats that each owes $9,200 in fines and other charges for impeding the progress of the House by not showing up in the Capitol last August as lawmakers deliberated a plan to overhaul the state's congressional map.—
John C. Moritz,
Austin American Statesman,
9 Apr. 2026
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Miller's family members openly accused then-sheriff Marion Joe Russell of impeding the investigation, as Nipp was Russell's nephew.—
Jessie Christopher Smith,
Oklahoman,
7 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Imanaga struck out 11 — tying his career high — in six innings and allowed just two more hits after Turner’s blast.—
Meghan Montemurro,
Chicago Tribune,
16 Apr. 2026
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Clare Coleman, president and CEO of the National Family Planning & Reproductive Health Association, which represents health professionals focused on family planning, said tying Title X to birth-rate goals replaces individual decision-making with a government objective.—
Dr. Céline Gounder,
CBS News,
16 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Brian Hooker reported his wife missing on Sunday, April 5, saying she had been swept away from a dingy which lost power the night before, hampering his ability to seek help.—
Cristian Benavides,
CBS News,
13 Apr. 2026
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The moves have reportedly left the task force without prosecutors with national security experience, hampering its goal to root out American connections to the Hamas attacks (which included 40 Americans among its approximately 1,200 victims).—
Andrew Lapin,
Sun Sentinel,
31 Mar. 2026
Verb
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From corrective eye surgery to confining plasma for nuclear fusion research and from entertainment to quickening checkout at supermarkets, lasers are now part of our everyday lives.—
Ameya Paleja,
Interesting Engineering,
30 Mar. 2026
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Certain signs, such as the recent decree by the municipal authorities of Damascus confining the sale of alcohol to Christian neighborhoods, are ominous.—
Alvaro Vargas Llosa,
Oc Register,
26 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Through the fall and winter, as the Justice Department demanded that states turn over confidential voter roll information, Team America worked to solve problems hindering the use of digital tools to comb the lists for noncitizens who had illegally registered to vote.—
Doug Bock Clark,
ProPublica,
13 Apr. 2026
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After Congress rejected those cuts earlier this year, the White House slowed the release of NIH grant money, hindering ongoing and future scientific research.—
CNN Money,
CNN Money,
11 Apr. 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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Russian sage adds both height and texture to gardens without obstructing the view of the plants behind it, thanks to its airy appearance.—
SJ McShane,
Martha Stewart,
16 Apr. 2026
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Joshua Mills, 32, was sentenced Thursday to five to 20 years in prison on one count of assault with intent to do great bodily harm and received an additional two to four years for two counts of resisting, obstructing or assaulting a police officer and one year for second-degree retail fraud.—
Joseph Buczek,
CBS News,
16 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Handcuffing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/handcuffing. Accessed 20 Apr. 2026.
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