restrain

Syllables: re·strain/ɹɪˈstɹeɪn/

restrain verb: to control or keep in check.

Verb (1)

restrain (third-person singular simple present restrains, present participle restraining, simple past and past participle restrained)

(transitive) To control or keep in check.
- As with vicarious mismenstruation, the abnormal cessation only requires strict attention to the general health, with such measures to restrain hemorrhage as have already been indicated.1875, Russell Thacher Trall, The Mother's Hygienic Hand-book, page 42
Synonyms:

check
(transitive) To deprive of liberty.

Synonyms:

confine, detain
(transitive) To restrict or limit.
- He was restrained by the straitjacket.
- In order to grant the rich these pleasures, the social contract is reconfigured. […] The public realm is privatised, the regulations restraining the ultra-wealthy and the companies they control are abandoned, and Edwardian levels of inequality are almost fetishised.2013 May 17, George Monbiot, “Money just makes the rich suffer”, in The Guardian Weekly, volume 188, number 23, page 19

Verb (2)

restrain (third-person singular simple present restrains, present participle restraining, simple past and past participle restrained)

(transitive) To strain again.
- Squeeze the juice from 3 oranges and let the juice stand. Then pour it off, strain, and mix with the syrup. Restrain the liquid and chill in a mold.1998, Elena Molokhovets, Classic Russian Cooking, page 360

restrain meaning in Hindi, Tamil, Marathi and Urdu

restrain in Hindi

to restrain, prevent, hinder: रोकना roknā
to restrain, hold back: डाँटना ḍā̃ṭnā
to restrain, check, curb: सँभालना sambhālnā

restrain in Tamil

அடக்கி வை, அடக்கிவை, கட்டுப்படுத்தி வை, சிறைப்படுத்து, தடுத்து நிறுத்து, தடை

restrain in Marathi

restrain, check: नियंत्रण niyantraṇ

restrain in Urdu

باز رکھنا, دبانا, پابندی لگانا, روکنا, رکاوٹ ڈالنا, سادھنا

More languagesFewer languages

restrain in Bengali: আগলানো aglanō
restrain in Malayalam: പിടിച്ചുനിർത്തുക, അടക്കി നിർത്തുക, പ്രതിബന്ധിക്കുക
restrain in Kannada: ಉಡುಗು, ಉಯ್ಯು, ತಡೆ, ತಡೆಹಿಡಿ
restrain in Odia: ଅଟକାଇବା aṭakāibā
restrain in Sanskrit: यामयति yāmáyati, बन्धति bándhati, बध्नाति badhnā́ti
restrain in Thai: ควบคุม kûuap-kum, กักขัง gàk-kǎng, ยับยั้ง yáp-yáng, รั้ง ráng

Examples of restrain in a sentence

My ex-fiancé filed a lawsuit against me for a false restraining order and defamation.
My cousin got off lightly with a restraining order after he broke the boy’s leg.
Repairs will be done tomorrow so meantime restrain from using the bath.

All 32 example sentences with restrain

Synonyms of restrain

All synonyms of restrain

Forms of restrain

third-person singular present	restrains
present participle	restraining
past participle	restrained
past	restrained

Past tense of restrain: restrained

Origin of restrain

From Middle English restreinen, from Old French restreindre, from Latin rēstringere (“fasten, tighten”).

From re- + strain.

Words formed from restrain

Words that rhyme with restrain

48 more rhymesFewer rhymes

Questions about restrain

What does restrain mean?: Restrain means to control or keep in check.
What is restrain in Hindi?: Restrain in Hindi is रोकना (roknā), डाँटना (ḍā̃ṭnā), सँभालना (sambhālnā). See Restrain meaning in Hindi.
What part of speech is restrain?: Restrain is a verb.
How do you pronounce restrain?: Restrain is pronounced /ɹɪˈstɹeɪn/.
What is the past tense of restrain?: The past tense of restrain is restrained.

Words near restrain in the dictionary

Last updated: 2026-09-02

Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: en-us-restrain.ogg.

Cite this entry: “restrain.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/restrain. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.