shackled 1 of 2

adjective

as in bolted

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shackled

2 of 2

verb

past tense of shackle
1
as in bound
to confine or restrain with or as if with chains unwilling to shackle the dogs to the wall of the house

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in hampered
to create difficulty for the work or activity of shackled by poverty and ignorance

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 shackled
Verb
Michelle Saniei, without being shackled to a man, has come into her own and managed to pop out from a crowded field. — Brian Moylan, Vulture, 8 Aug. 2026 Former child soldiers describe being abducted by Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces, shackled and ordered to fire on warplanes and civilians, under threat of beatings or death. — Sam Mednick, Los Angeles Times, 3 Aug. 2026 On Monday, the pair wore orange jail jumpsuits with their hands and feet shackled. — Sharon Bernstein, Sacbee.com, 3 Aug. 2026 D4vd was seated shackled and emotionless as the photos were shown. — Marlene Lenthang, NBC news, 25 July 2026 Burke, shackled to a chair, reportedly showed no visible reaction. — Michael Ruiz, FOXNews.com, 21 July 2026 The airline’s flights have grown longer and crueler in recent years, with deportees sometimes shackled for days, according to an investigation by Mother Jones. — Jake Sheridan, Chicago Tribune, 17 July 2026 Carlos Sanchez, the Colombia midfielder, shadowed and successfully shackled Messi in a 2011 Copa America game that finished goalless. — Charlotte Harpur, New York Times, 10 July 2026 In the 1700s, when West Africans were shackled and shipped to the South Carolina–Georgia seaboard, some were forced to work in rice paddies, in cotton fields, and on indigo plantations, where the moist climate resembled that of their homelands. — Jeanne Malle, Air Mail, 4 July 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for shackled
  1. bolted
  2. bound
  3. hampered
  4. tied
  5. handcuffed
  6. impeded
  7. anchored
  8. chained
Adjective
  • Unlike standard wheels, which rely solely on air pressure to push the tire against the rim, beadlocks use a bolted outer ring to physically sandwich the tire in place.
    — New Atlas, New Atlas, 2 June 2026
Definition of bolted
Verb
  • Perhaps most importantly, the brothers had an indisputable chemistry, both in the studio and bounding around racks of equipment on stage.
    — Will Pritchard, Pitchfork, 8 Aug. 2026
  • Instead, after some slight weakness, the stock steadied, and then bounded up 6% higher.
    — Eva Roytburg, Fortune, 7 Aug. 2026
Definition of bound
Verb
  • Authorities immediately launched a rescue operation involving firefighters, police, the National Disaster Response Force and civic officials but efforts were hampered by narrow access lanes that prevented the use of heavy machinery, officials said.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 12 Aug. 2026
  • Recovery efforts for the spacecraft, known as Ship 40, have been hampered by challenging conditions and rough seas.
    — Eric Lagatta, USA Today, 11 Aug. 2026
Definition of hampered
Adjective
  • There is a punk poetry to that film, an unapologetic spirit that feels so tied to what Araki has done his whole career.
    — Matt Minton, Variety, 30 July 2026
  • Unofficial results for two special elections held Tuesday show the Minnesota House will remain tied heading into the 2026 legislative session.
    — Aki Nace, CBS News, 27 Jan. 2026
Definition of tied
Verb
  • Lebson said he has been moved from a prison to a civilian hospital, where he is hooked up to a feeding tube and handcuffed to a bed.
    — Michael Casey, Los Angeles Times, 7 Aug. 2026
  • The 4-photo carousel begins with a photo of Spider-Man releasing his iconic web, with the last photo showing several men handcuffed and covered in spiderwebs, overlooked by an ICE agent.
    — Greta Cross, USA Today, 7 Aug. 2026
Definition of handcuffed
Verb
  • The pickle brine impeded the wine’s crisp finish, too, leaving me with a flat-feeling, dense-tasting glass.
    — Elliott Harrell, Bon Appetit Magazine, 4 Aug. 2026
  • Folks who are hundreds of miles away from the forest are impeded by wildfire smoke.
    — Alex Robinson, Outdoor Life, 29 July 2026
Definition of impeded
Adjective
  • On a visit to Grand Cayman during a 2024 trip with Disney Cruise Line, Lee, who uses a wheelchair, was able to board and disembark the tender – a small boat used to ferry guests between an anchored cruise ship and the shore – via a portable ramp.
    — Nathan Diller, USA Today, 31 July 2026
  • In 2011, an anchored boat packed with sleeping tourists sank in Vietnam's scenic Ha Long Bay, killing 12 tourists from nine countries, including two Americans.
    — CBS News, CBS News, 13 July 2026
Definition of anchored
Verb
  • Alicent, not at all her friend in the book, is chained up and not sent off on some silly assassination attempt to kill her son, Aemond.
    — Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 10 Aug. 2026
  • Most recently, in May 2026, Cal/OSHA issued the company six citations, following an incident during a fire in January 2026 when two workers were reportedly found locked inside a cold storage room that had been chained from the outside.
    — Maureen O'Hare, CNN Money, 7 Aug. 2026
Definition of chained

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Cite this Entry

“Shackled.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/shackled. Accessed 15 Aug. 2026.

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