variants
also straightjacket
as in confinement
a jacket that has long arms which can be tied together behind someone's back and that is used to control the movement (as of a violent prisoner or patient)
The magician struggled to free his arms from the straitjacket and escape from the tank of water he was submerged in.
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
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 straitjacket
The music video may cause initial backlash among those concerned about propagating mental health stigmas by featuring images of a person in a straitjacket.
—
Ingrid Fajardo, Billboard, 10 Jan. 2025
Rope, leather, buckles, straitjackets, Lycra, latex, gas masks, ball gags.
—Jessica Furseth, hazlitt.net, 4 Jan. 2025
Neither immediately opened, yet the play was anything but over; Jackson, one of the league’s most elusive playmakers, has slipped a defense’s apparent straitjacket many times before on the way to becoming the NFL’s two-time Most Valuable Player.
—Andrew Greif, NBC News, 17 Nov. 2024
This means that the straitjacket of sanctions has been loosened for Kim.
—Daniel R. Russel, Foreign Affairs, 12 June 2018
See All Example Sentences for straitjacket
Ingrid Fajardo, Billboard, 10 Jan. 2025
Rope, leather, buckles, straitjackets, Lycra, latex, gas masks, ball gags.
—Jessica Furseth, hazlitt.net, 4 Jan. 2025
Neither immediately opened, yet the play was anything but over; Jackson, one of the league’s most elusive playmakers, has slipped a defense’s apparent straitjacket many times before on the way to becoming the NFL’s two-time Most Valuable Player.
—Andrew Greif, NBC News, 17 Nov. 2024
This means that the straitjacket of sanctions has been loosened for Kim.
—Daniel R. Russel, Foreign Affairs, 12 June 2018
See All Example Sentences for straitjacket
Recent Examples of Synonyms for straitjacket
Noun
-
His wife, Kimberly Maddox, 44, was sentenced to 12 months, including time in home confinement.—
Julia Coin,
Charlotte Observer,
21 Apr. 2025
-
Federal judge Reed O’Connor dismissed Tarrant County and six jailers listed as defendants from the lawsuit in early February, citing the plaintiffs’ failure to show that Johnson’s death was a result of conditions of confinement, such as overcrowding.—
Cody Copeland,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
17 Apr. 2025
Noun
-
Rabbi Anne wears a keepsake from her grandfather — a metal thimble that dangles from a silver chain around her neck.—
Hollace Ava Weiner,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
27 Apr. 2025
-
Bhattacharya explained further that the data platform would also link the data from real world sources such as pharmacy chains, the Department of Veterans Affairs, the Indian Health Service and fitness trackers and smart watches.—
Livi Stanford,
Hartford Courant,
26 Apr. 2025
Noun
-
In recent years, the crabs have also been spreading across the United Kingdom, where authorities are experimenting with traps to prevent them from migrating to downstream breeding grounds.—
Sarah Kuta,
Smithsonian Magazine,
2 May 2025
-
The Hill: Democrats have fallen into a narrative trap with Abrego Garcia.—
Jonathan Easley,
The Hill,
30 Apr. 2025
Noun
-
It’s finished with a straight point collar and buttoned barrel cuffs.—
Jamie Allison Sanders,
People.com,
25 Apr. 2025
-
Fighters such as heavyweight world champions Oleksandr Usyk and Daniel Dubois, and super-middleweight champion Canelo Alvarez, walk through the doors of the palatial Old Royal Naval College, tuxedo collars straining atop their muscled necks.—
Jacob Whitehead,
New York Times,
24 Apr. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Straitjacket.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/straitjacket. Accessed 7 May. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share