as in bind
something that physically prevents free movement
the man reluctantly held out his wrists so the policeman could snap on handcuffs
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
1
as in binds
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 hampers
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
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of handcuffs
Madison E. Goldberg, PEOPLE, 30 Oct. 2025
Their return capped a week of intense negotiations by Seoul to win their release and bring them home after they were taken into custody in handcuffs and shackles.
—Bart Jansen, USA Today, 29 Oct. 2025
Officers saw Jackson reaching for a fanny pack and placed him in handcuffs, recovering a firearm and a plastic bag of Fentanyl that weighed approximately 10 grams from the fanny pack.
—Isabelle Friedman, Boston Herald, 28 Oct. 2025
Anne Hathaway tried out Sabrina Carpenter's fuzzy pink handcuffs during the pop star's concert at Madison Square Garden on Sunday.
—Daysia Tolentino, Entertainment Weekly, 27 Oct. 2025
Baltimore County officials are now calling for a review of how Kenwood High School uses the AI gun detection system and why the teen ended up in handcuffs despite school safety officials quickly determining there was no weapon.
—Karina Tsui, CNN Money, 25 Oct. 2025
Carpenter then tossed Hadid her signature furry pink handcuffs as Hadid blew her a kiss.
—Emily Zemler, Rolling Stone, 24 Oct. 2025
Police arrived and detained O’Hara, placing him in handcuffs, the complaint said.
—Jennifer Rodriguez, Miami Herald, 23 Oct. 2025
After Durm opened the van’s back doors, Orlando Mitchell used the chain between his handcuffs to choke the deputy, according to court documents.
—Noe Padilla, IndyStar, 21 Oct. 2025
Omar Kelly
august 19, Miami Herald, 19 Aug. 2025
At the crash site, some of the rescuers find Morrow, who holds them at gunpoint and handcuffs them together in the lab.
—Dave Nemetz, TVLine, 12 Aug. 2025
Noun
Carpenter asked, as Fogelmanis smiled and held up his hands to receive the pink handcuffs.
—Madison E. Goldberg, PEOPLE, 30 Oct. 2025
Their return capped a week of intense negotiations by Seoul to win their release and bring them home after they were taken into custody in handcuffs and shackles.
—Bart Jansen, USA Today, 29 Oct. 2025
Officers saw Jackson reaching for a fanny pack and placed him in handcuffs, recovering a firearm and a plastic bag of Fentanyl that weighed approximately 10 grams from the fanny pack.
—Isabelle Friedman, Boston Herald, 28 Oct. 2025
Anne Hathaway tried out Sabrina Carpenter's fuzzy pink handcuffs during the pop star's concert at Madison Square Garden on Sunday.
—Daysia Tolentino, Entertainment Weekly, 27 Oct. 2025
Baltimore County officials are now calling for a review of how Kenwood High School uses the AI gun detection system and why the teen ended up in handcuffs despite school safety officials quickly determining there was no weapon.
—Karina Tsui, CNN Money, 25 Oct. 2025
Carpenter then tossed Hadid her signature furry pink handcuffs as Hadid blew her a kiss.
—Emily Zemler, Rolling Stone, 24 Oct. 2025
Police arrived and detained O’Hara, placing him in handcuffs, the complaint said.
—Jennifer Rodriguez, Miami Herald, 23 Oct. 2025
After Durm opened the van’s back doors, Orlando Mitchell used the chain between his handcuffs to choke the deputy, according to court documents.
—Noe Padilla, IndyStar, 21 Oct. 2025
Verb
But this unit is two plays — or better yet, two injuries — from being a disaster that handcuffs Miami’s offense, like last year’s unit did, after Grier laughed at the media for its concern about fragile state of the 2024 O-line.
—Omar Kelly
august 19, Miami Herald, 19 Aug. 2025
At the crash site, some of the rescuers find Morrow, who holds them at gunpoint and handcuffs them together in the lab.
—Dave Nemetz, TVLine, 12 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for handcuffs
Noun
-
Alvarado put the Phillies in a bind this season, and that might not be easy for those in the clubhouse to forgive.—
Jackson Roberts,
MSNBC Newsweek,
31 Oct. 2025
-
Similarly to Young in Week 2 against Arizona, Dalton’s giveaways put the Panthers in a bind early.—
DIAMOND VENCES,
Charlotte Observer,
26 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Philanthropy can be the glue that binds generations.—
William Jarvis,
Fortune,
28 Oct. 2025
-
However, there's also another tie that binds the sparkling statements Meghan and Eugenie made, as both of their only tiara wears to date.—
Janine Henni,
PEOPLE,
28 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Maintain a safe distance from large vehicles - Trucks or buses can produce a water spray that hampers visibility.—
NC Weather Bot,
Charlotte Observer,
30 Oct. 2025
-
Maintain a safe distance from large vehicles - Trucks or buses can produce a water spray that hampers visibility.—
CA Weather Bot,
Sacbee.com,
22 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Texas Roadhouse, which also operates casual dining chains Bubba’s 33 and Jaggers, is expected to report third-quarter results at the end of October.—
Natasha Abellard,
CNBC,
3 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Inertia hinders many consumers from seeking out higher rates.—
Daniel de Visé,
USA Today,
2 Nov. 2025
-
But biologists know relatively little about how these aggressive cells function, which hinders knowledge of cancer progression and resistance.—
Perri Thaler,
IEEE Spectrum,
30 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
With that in mind, consider stacking charms, unique metals, different chain weights, mixing stones, and even materials when layering pieces in your collection (or shopping for new styles).—
Jessie Quinn,
StyleCaster,
31 Oct. 2025
-
Videos of diners who were surprised to see the singer at one of the restaurant chain’s locations have also gone viral.—
Natalia Cano,
Billboard,
31 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
The law ties the amount to a statistic called the Payment Error Rate -- the official measure of accuracy -- whether states are giving recipients either too much, or too little, in food stamp money.—
James Sneed,
NPR,
31 Oct. 2025
-
The moment was even more special as Swift herself was in the crowd to cheer on the tight end, who now ties Priest Holmes for the most regular-season TDs in the Chiefs’ history.—
Hannah Dailey,
Billboard,
31 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Let go of whatever impedes your progress and growth.—
Georgia Nicols,
Denver Post,
22 Oct. 2025
-
If a mental image only impedes the human’s process of emulation, why should her mindedness make Celmins’s web less natural than the spider’s?—
Harmon Siegel,
Artforum,
1 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Handcuffs.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/handcuffs. Accessed 7 Nov. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share