1
as in chain
usually manacles plural
something that physically prevents free movement
manacles prevented the bear from roaming beyond a very small area
Synonyms & Similar Words
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2
as in obstacle
something that makes movement or progress difficult
the warring groups need to shake off the manacle of their troubled past and learn to live with one another in peace
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in to bind
to confine or restrain with or as if with chains
manacled the prisoner to the wall
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to hamper
to create difficulty for the work or activity of
in this situation, the police are manacled by unnecessary regulations
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of manacle
Mara Bovsun, New York Daily News, 29 June 2024
During the trial, Wilber wore a manacle around his ankle and a stun belt on his arm.
—Sarah Volpenhein, Journal Sentinel, 2 Aug. 2022
Brown turned Milwaukee’s defense from manacle to meme.
—Globe Staff, BostonGlobe.com, 4 May 2022
How to Be an Antiracist is a journal of Kendi's efforts to free himself of the ideological manacles clamped upon him by a society suffused with white supremacism, capitalist exploitation, misogyny and the repression of unconventional sexuality.
—Dallas News, 26 Aug. 2019
From every officer’s belt there dangled an insectlike furl of disposable plastic manacles.
—Caleb Crain, Harper's magazine, 22 July 2019
The genie is literally the slave of the lamp, his power bracelets actually manacles keeping him obedient to an endless round of masters.
—Michael Dirda, Washington Post, 12 June 2019
The cellar dungeons were complete with bolts, chains and manacles for securing captives to the floors.
—Jonathan W. White, Smithsonian, 27 Feb. 2018
Eric Adler, Kansas City Star, 21 Jan. 2026
And single file and manacled is exactly how 238 Venezuelans were frog-marched into El Salvador’s prisons last March, expelled from the U.S. without trial.
—Time, 10 Sep. 2025
Drugged, kidnapped, and manacled while a pitiless killer wears her face.
—Keith Phipps, Vulture, 11 July 2024
Rubio hammered home his argument that there’s no daylight between Cuba’s lack of justice and Trump’s own trial, with a video featuring a military official manacled and brought before a crowd of more than 15,000 in the Havana Sports Palace arena.
—Orlando Sentinel and South Florida Sun Sentinel Editorial Boards, Orlando Sentinel, 14 June 2024
The scandal is that, instead of doing his duty, the attorney general manacled his own Justice Department’s investigation.
—The Editors, National Review, 21 July 2023
His hands were manacled to a chain belt at his waist, and his feet were bound by leg irons.
—Pamela Colloff, ProPublica, 4 Dec. 2019
During those endless days and nights, everything was done to break his will: solitary confinement, pressure to confess by cruel supervisors and the humiliation of being manacled while receiving medical attention.
—Ariel Dorfman, New York Times, 27 Apr. 2018
Noun
Beneath it, on the left side of the page, was a picture of Jackson in manacles.
—Mara Bovsun, New York Daily News, 29 June 2024
During the trial, Wilber wore a manacle around his ankle and a stun belt on his arm.
—Sarah Volpenhein, Journal Sentinel, 2 Aug. 2022
Brown turned Milwaukee’s defense from manacle to meme.
—Globe Staff, BostonGlobe.com, 4 May 2022
How to Be an Antiracist is a journal of Kendi's efforts to free himself of the ideological manacles clamped upon him by a society suffused with white supremacism, capitalist exploitation, misogyny and the repression of unconventional sexuality.
—Dallas News, 26 Aug. 2019
From every officer’s belt there dangled an insectlike furl of disposable plastic manacles.
—Caleb Crain, Harper's magazine, 22 July 2019
The genie is literally the slave of the lamp, his power bracelets actually manacles keeping him obedient to an endless round of masters.
—Michael Dirda, Washington Post, 12 June 2019
The cellar dungeons were complete with bolts, chains and manacles for securing captives to the floors.
—Jonathan W. White, Smithsonian, 27 Feb. 2018
Verb
King appeared in a gray and white, striped prison suit, with his hands manacled at his waist.
—Eric Adler, Kansas City Star, 21 Jan. 2026
And single file and manacled is exactly how 238 Venezuelans were frog-marched into El Salvador’s prisons last March, expelled from the U.S. without trial.
—Time, 10 Sep. 2025
Drugged, kidnapped, and manacled while a pitiless killer wears her face.
—Keith Phipps, Vulture, 11 July 2024
Rubio hammered home his argument that there’s no daylight between Cuba’s lack of justice and Trump’s own trial, with a video featuring a military official manacled and brought before a crowd of more than 15,000 in the Havana Sports Palace arena.
—Orlando Sentinel and South Florida Sun Sentinel Editorial Boards, Orlando Sentinel, 14 June 2024
The scandal is that, instead of doing his duty, the attorney general manacled his own Justice Department’s investigation.
—The Editors, National Review, 21 July 2023
His hands were manacled to a chain belt at his waist, and his feet were bound by leg irons.
—Pamela Colloff, ProPublica, 4 Dec. 2019
During those endless days and nights, everything was done to break his will: solitary confinement, pressure to confess by cruel supervisors and the humiliation of being manacled while receiving medical attention.
—Ariel Dorfman, New York Times, 27 Apr. 2018
Recent Examples of Synonyms for manacle
Noun
-
Now, the local chain is preparing to anchor itself in one of the city’s most visible — and long-dormant — building.—
Nicole Buss,
Sacbee.com,
21 Mar. 2026
-
Unleaded gasoline and diesel fuels were mixed in error at a Meijer Express fuel station in Macomb County, Michigan, the supermarket chain said Saturday.—
Paula Wethington,
CBS News,
21 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Shifts in the technology industry have been a primary obstacle to recovery of the conference and convention business in San Jose, Bellisario said.—
Ethan Baron,
Mercury News,
21 Mar. 2026
-
Martinez-Cid points to the Helms-Burden Act, as the most significant obstacle for any Cuban Americans considering investment.—
Isabel Rosales,
CNN Money,
21 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Courts often look to rulings in other jurisdictions to guide decisions, even if those precedents aren’t binding, according to Reyes, who said this is especially true in new legal fields like climate litigation.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
24 Mar. 2026
-
This is news that is bound to be celebrated by many in the creative community who have become loudly and vehemently opposed to anything AI encroaching on Hollywood.—
Brian Welk,
IndieWire,
24 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Garland died in 1969, of an accidental overdose of sleeping pills, but the tragedy did not hamper Minnelli’s ascent.—
Matt Weinstock,
New Yorker,
25 Mar. 2026
-
His ability to hold runners has hampered him.—
Shawn McFarland,
Dallas Morning News,
24 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
The money to transform the website came from capital improvement projects, but officials could not answer questions about specific bonds or other funding sources used for the project.—
Chaya Tong,
Austin American Statesman,
19 Mar. 2026
-
That sent Treasury yields upward in the bond market, along with the higher-than-expected update on inflation at the wholesale level.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
19 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
For some seniors in Minnesota, happy hour comes with hurdles — but a new bill could change that by letting assisted living facilities serve drinks without a liquor license.—
Deirdre Bardolf,
FOXNews.com,
21 Mar. 2026
-
The layering of seemingly redundant policies targeting the same countries — new visa charges, entry bans and benefit-application freezes — are designed to create so many bureaucratic hurdles that people give up, experts and lawyers have told the Herald.—
Syra Ortiz Blanes,
Miami Herald,
20 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
This was only the fourth 20-rebound game of his career; the 21 boards tied a career high.—
Barry Jackson,
Miami Herald,
22 Mar. 2026
-
Just a couple of months later, another dog was found at the airport; this time, the dog was found tied to a pole in the short-term parking garage.—
Patrick Damp,
CBS News,
21 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
In a particularly craven twist, this letter enlisted the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Equal Protection Clause to halt or hinder affinity programming in schools.—
Brittany Allen,
Literary Hub,
20 Mar. 2026
-
State investigators say federal authorities have blocked them from accessing evidence, hindering a possible use-of-force investigation.—
Bart Jansen,
USA Today,
20 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Manacle.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/manacle. Accessed 25 Mar. 2026.
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