1
as in helm
the place of leadership or command
after the president resigned, the vice president stepped in and took the reins of the company
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in power
the right or means to command or control others
a peaceful transfer of the reins of government has always been a hallmark of our nation
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of reins
Helen Regan, CNN Money, 17 Feb. 2026
Jackson stepped down as president of Rainbow/PUSH in 2023, ceding the reins to a Dallas pastor who left less than a year later.
—Bob Goldsborough, Chicago Tribune, 17 Feb. 2026
Under the direction of new owner David Ellison, the son of conservative billionaire and Trump ally Larry Ellison, CBS's parent company, Paramount Skydance, bought Weiss's independent news publication, The Free Press, for $150 million, handing her the reins of CBS News shortly thereafter.
—Sydney Bucksbaum, Entertainment Weekly, 16 Feb. 2026
Prepare to grab the reins of your reality.
—Usa Today, USA Today, 13 Feb. 2026
The Bulls are a losing team that’s not giving him the reins.
—Fred Katz, New York Times, 13 Feb. 2026
Lee wasn’t around, then, to see the Hornets nearly fully erase a 12-point fourth-quarter deficit, turning the reins over to assistant Lamar Skeeter to finish out one of the craziest nights in uptown in recent memory.
—Roderick Boone, Charlotte Observer, 10 Feb. 2026
It was all carefully managed by Disney after its messy changeover in 2020, when Bob Iger handed the reins to Bob Chapek only to reclaim his job two years later.
—Alexei Oreskovic, Fortune, 4 Feb. 2026
The plot follows a visionary billionaire (Kapoor) who grooms a rising tycoon (Vijay Varma) to take over the reins of India’s largest conglomerate as his successor, only to unceremoniously fire his protege a few months into the job.
—Jesse Whittock, Deadline, 3 Feb. 2026
Noun
Analysts believe Thaksin made a deal to return and allow his party to take up the reins of government once again.
—Helen Regan, CNN Money, 17 Feb. 2026
Jackson stepped down as president of Rainbow/PUSH in 2023, ceding the reins to a Dallas pastor who left less than a year later.
—Bob Goldsborough, Chicago Tribune, 17 Feb. 2026
Under the direction of new owner David Ellison, the son of conservative billionaire and Trump ally Larry Ellison, CBS's parent company, Paramount Skydance, bought Weiss's independent news publication, The Free Press, for $150 million, handing her the reins of CBS News shortly thereafter.
—Sydney Bucksbaum, Entertainment Weekly, 16 Feb. 2026
Prepare to grab the reins of your reality.
—Usa Today, USA Today, 13 Feb. 2026
The Bulls are a losing team that’s not giving him the reins.
—Fred Katz, New York Times, 13 Feb. 2026
Lee wasn’t around, then, to see the Hornets nearly fully erase a 12-point fourth-quarter deficit, turning the reins over to assistant Lamar Skeeter to finish out one of the craziest nights in uptown in recent memory.
—Roderick Boone, Charlotte Observer, 10 Feb. 2026
It was all carefully managed by Disney after its messy changeover in 2020, when Bob Iger handed the reins to Bob Chapek only to reclaim his job two years later.
—Alexei Oreskovic, Fortune, 4 Feb. 2026
The plot follows a visionary billionaire (Kapoor) who grooms a rising tycoon (Vijay Varma) to take over the reins of India’s largest conglomerate as his successor, only to unceremoniously fire his protege a few months into the job.
—Jesse Whittock, Deadline, 3 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for reins
Noun
-
The French chef — who has spent the past five years as the culinary director for the restaurant group behind Georgie, Knox Bistro, Le Bilboquet and others — is now fully at the restaurant’s helm and is rolling out a new menu, which will reshape Georgie into a destination for French cuisine.—
Claire Ballor
Staff Reporter,
Dallas Morning News,
11 Feb. 2026
-
Camper helms production on the track, laying down a soulful canvas for Monét’s honeyed vocals to glide over.—
Michael Saponara,
Billboard,
11 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Food and drink Onsite restaurant L’Escale is just as much a Greenwich institution as the hotel itself—a proper entity conveniently attached at the hip to your lodging for power lunchers in daylight, special-occasion diners in the evening, and a rotating cast of Hopper subjects always at the bar.—
Charlie Hobbs,
Condé Nast Traveler,
16 Feb. 2026
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Republicans often couched their fury at speech restrictions — around right-wing cultural politics and COVID-19, in particular — as part of a broader critique of corporate power.—
Ben Smith,
semafor.com,
16 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Alijah Arenas sank into a folding chair, his face buried in a towel, his breathing heavy.—
Ryan Kartje,
Los Angeles Times,
19 Feb. 2026
-
In 1998, the firm expanded into furniture with Mario Bellini’s revolutionary Bellini chair, which was awarded the prestigious Compasso d’Oro design award in 2001.—
Sofia Celeste,
Footwear News,
18 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
And most of the officials agreed that the Fed’s key rate is close to a level that neither stimulates nor restrains the economy.—
Christopher Rugaber,
Los Angeles Times,
19 Feb. 2026
-
According to projections made at the December meeting, that’s only about half a percentage point from the committee consensus on the neutral rate, or one that neither supports nor restrains growth.—
Jeff Cox,
CNBC,
5 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
Carolyn switches her nail color from a bold red to a blander shade; John hobbles out of his George magazine office wearing a cast on his left ankle due to a paragliding accident.—
Chris Murphy,
Vanity Fair,
20 Jan. 2026
-
Kittle hobbles off the field George Kittle limped off the field late in the third quarter with an ankle injury amid a productive night.—
Chris Biderman,
Sacbee.com,
23 Dec. 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
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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
Verb
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Secrets that could take down a company, an industry; that's a bond that tethers you for life.—
Melissa Fleur Afshar,
MSNBC Newsweek,
11 Dec. 2025
-
The nature of my work tethers me to London.—
Rohan Banerjee,
Time,
23 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
To address this, Ivo uses a multi-step pipeline that chains together more than 400 model calls for each contract review.—
Charlie Fink,
Forbes.com,
20 Jan. 2026
-
Tokyo Central is owned by Japanese company Pan Pacific Retail Management, which also runs the grocery chains Gelson’s and Don Quijote.—
John Metcalfe,
Mercury News,
3 Dec. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Reins.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/reins. Accessed 22 Feb. 2026.
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