Word.ws English Dictionary

keep a tight rein on

keep a tight rein on verb: to exercise strict control over; keep in check.

Verb

keep a tight rein on (third-person singular simple present keeps a tight rein on, present participle keeping a tight rein on, simple past and past participle kept a tight rein on)

  1. To exercise strict control over; keep in check.
    • Class "8F" 2-8-0 No. 48501 keeps a tight rein on heavily loaded northbound hoppers as it descends the 1 in 90 gradient.1960 April, J. P. Wilson, E. N. C. Haywood, “The route through the Peak - Derby to Manchester: Part Two”, in Trains Illustrated, page 226, photo caption

Forms of keep a tight rein on

third-person singular presentkeeps a tight rein on
present participlekeeping a tight rein on
past participlekept a tight rein on
pastkept a tight rein on

Questions about keep a tight rein on

What does keep a tight rein on mean?
Keep a tight rein on means to exercise strict control over; keep in check.
What part of speech is keep a tight rein on?
Keep a tight rein on is a verb.
What is the past tense of keep a tight rein on?
The past tense of keep a tight rein on is kept a tight rein on.

Words near keep a tight rein on in the dictionary

  1. keep a dog and bark oneself
  2. keep a lid on
  3. keep a look-out
  4. keep a lookout
  5. keep a low profile
  6. keep a tight rein on
  7. keep a watch out
  8. keep a weather eye open
  9. keep across
  10. keep ahead
  11. keep an act

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: keep a tight rein on (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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Cite this entry: “keep a tight rein on.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/keep_a_tight_rein_on. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.