straitjacket

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.

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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 So now, even the bankers are wriggling out of Carney’s globalist climate straitjacket. Rachel Marsden, Hartford Courant, 26 Apr. 2025 Basketball teams in an 0-3 straitjacket like the Heat are 0-118 all-time on advancing. Greg Cote, Miami Herald, 26 Apr. 2025 The state of the economy and Trump’s political standing in the medium term will be largely determined by whether Trump can Houdini his way out of a tariff straitjacket of his own fashioning. The Editors, National Review, 29 Apr. 2025 Thompson, who some Rockets officials privately predict could become as dynamic and dominant as any of their young talents, put Curry in the proverbial straitjacket. Anthony Slater, New York Times, 7 Apr. 2025 See All Example Sentences for straitjacket
Recent Examples of Synonyms for straitjacket
Noun
  • The central function of the judiciary, in all places, is the protection of individuals against arbitrary confinement by the executive.
    George Liebmann, Baltimore Sun, 2 July 2025
  • Alcatraz prison embodied terror, isolation and despair, where hardened criminals faced relentless confinement on a desolate rock surrounded by icy, inescapable waters.
    Letters to the Editor, The Orlando Sentinel, 2 July 2025
Noun
  • Coherent dialogues flow naturally, which can only be observed across a chain of exchanges.
    Tarush Agarwal, Forbes.com, 8 July 2025
  • Both top and bottom were held together by strings of gold chain, which hugged her waist and chest.
    Michael Nied, People.com, 8 July 2025
Noun
  • Wyoming’s wildlife agency, for example, traps and relocates conflict bears (or kills problem bears if allowed by the Fish and Wildlife Service), knocks on doors to calm nervous landowners, hands out bear spray, and reminds campers not to cook chili in their tents.
    Christine Peterson, Vox, 27 June 2025
  • The pricing trap: Most service businesses bill by the hour.
    Preston Fore, Fortune, 27 June 2025
Noun
  • With its half-and-half pinstripe design, chevrons on the shoulder and V-necked collar, the lightweight kit was launched on Danish television in February 1986.
    Peter Carline, New York Times, 6 July 2025
  • The dress, a cotton poplin A-line shirt dress, featured a sharp collar, button-down front, and a distinctive grosgrain tab at the waist adorned with Thom Browne’s signature red, white and blue stripe — a quiet tribute to the holiday’s colors.
    WWD Staff, Footwear News, 5 July 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Straitjacket.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/straitjacket. Accessed 12 Jul. 2025.

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