1
as in discipline
the checking of one's true feelings and impulses when dealing with others
it will take a great deal of restraint to keep from telling her how ugly that dress is
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in restriction
something that limits one's freedom of action or choice
civil libertarians contend that the new laws place too many restraints on our constitutionally guaranteed rights
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in temperance
the power to control one's actions, impulses, or emotions
he shows very little restraint or tact when expressing his opinions about others
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of restraint
Hold annual training around restraint and seclusion policies for staff members, including bus drivers and administrators.
—
Lily Altavena, Freep.com, 4 July 2025
The lawsuit notes the administration dismantled internal accountability mechanisms and restraints governing the conduct of immigration agents and officers, shutting down multiple oversight agencies.
—Rachel Uranga, Los Angeles Times, 2 July 2025
The Bad Old Days were not the result of fiscal restraint, adherence to the luxury tax threshold, or fear of the second apron.
—Bill Speros, Boston Herald, 2 July 2025
This was really the one way -- the one restraint on his actions that's been effective so far.
—ABC News, 29 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for restraint
Lily Altavena, Freep.com, 4 July 2025
The lawsuit notes the administration dismantled internal accountability mechanisms and restraints governing the conduct of immigration agents and officers, shutting down multiple oversight agencies.
—Rachel Uranga, Los Angeles Times, 2 July 2025
The Bad Old Days were not the result of fiscal restraint, adherence to the luxury tax threshold, or fear of the second apron.
—Bill Speros, Boston Herald, 2 July 2025
This was really the one way -- the one restraint on his actions that's been effective so far.
—ABC News, 29 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for restraint
Recent Examples of Synonyms for restraint
Noun
-
But the promise of fiscal discipline has become a straightjacket.—
Oliver Eagleton,
Time,
5 July 2025
-
Prior to Vida, the Fort Wayne native studied culinary disciplines including butchery at Ivy Tech's Fort Wayne and Indianapolis campuses.—
Bradley Hohulin,
IndyStar,
4 July 2025
Noun
-
Starting in the 1970s, home construction plummeted and prices soared in high-opportunity coastal cities because of restrictions on supply.—
Marina Bolotnikova,
Vox,
7 July 2025
-
The company said in a statement that inventory value adjustments and the impact of U.S. restrictions on advanced AI chips for China had contributed to the decline in profits.—
Dylan Butts,
CNBC,
7 July 2025
Noun
-
More than 90 years after Congress repealed the 18th amendment, also known as Prohibition, and made consuming alcohol legal again, there’s a new temperance movement in town.—
Mike DeSimone,
Robb Report,
4 July 2025
-
For example, a team high in drive but low in temperance may be prone to rushing decisions or overlooking long-term consequences.—
Mary Crossan,
Forbes.com,
25 June 2025
Noun
-
The costs of academic repression, in other words, are not confined to elite institutions—they are borne by everyone.—
Matt Motta,
Scientific American,
10 July 2025
-
Mac's deeply closeted, Catholic-guilty homosexuality had been treated as a joke throughout the show's run, with the joke never truly being about Mac being gay, but about how his desperate repression had twisted him into a caricature of grasping masculinity.—
Dennis Perkins,
EW.com,
10 July 2025
Noun
-
The graphic novel format gave him the freedom to imagine without limitation—unbound by the logistical constraints of filmmaking.—
Okla Jones,
Essence,
14 July 2025
-
Davis is a magnetic front man, and the Roadhouse Band is an intoxicatingly raucous live outfit, but the constraints of the setup suited his new material, which is suffused with listlessness and yearning, dark jokes and wordy disquisitions on desire.—
Amanda Petrusich,
New Yorker,
14 July 2025
Noun
-
In that study, a chemical formulation was injected into a paralyzed rat's spine before the nerve tissue was stimulated with electricity.—
Abhimanyu Ghoshal,
New Atlas,
6 July 2025
-
Consider Otto Loewi, the German physiologist who helped prove that nerve signals are transmitted chemically.—
Chris Reed,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
6 July 2025
Noun
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Before the month comes to a close, Mercury will station retrograde in Leo, activating your 12th house of secrets, surrender and your subconscious, bringing up old memories or inhibitions that have been clouding your clarity.—
Valerie Mesa,
People.com,
8 July 2025
-
Reservations and inhibitions have a way of slipping away in the Snake Pit.—
Shari Rudavsky,
IndyStar,
2 July 2025
Noun
-
And that our natural limitations are not just physical, but also social and cognitive.—
Pia Lauritzen,
Forbes.com,
13 July 2025
-
Isaacson says the limitations on mobility in immigrant communities will have ripple effects across the nation's economy.—
Jasmine Garsd,
NPR,
12 July 2025
Cite this Entry
“Restraint.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/restraint. Accessed 18 Jul. 2025.
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