Definition of 'constraint'
Word forms: plural constraints
1. countable noun [oft adjective NOUN]
A constraint is something that limits or controls what you can do.
[Also + on] 2. uncountable noun
Collins COBUILD Advanced Learner’s Dictionary. Copyright © HarperCollins Publishers
British English pronunciation
American English pronunciation
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Word Frequency
constraint in British English
Collins English Dictionary. Copyright © HarperCollins Publishers
Word Frequency
constraint in American English
noun
1.
a constraining or being constrained
; specif.,a.
confinement or restriction
b.
compulsion or coercion
2.
a.
repression of natural feelings or behavior
b.
forced, unnatural manner; awkwardness
3.
something that constrains
Webster’s New World College Dictionary, 4th Edition. Copyright © 2010 by
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. All rights reserved.
Word Frequency
constraint in American English
(kənˈstreint)
noun
SYNONYMS 1. force, obligation, pressure.1.
limitation or restriction
2.
repression of natural feelings and impulses
to practice constraint
3.
unnatural restraint in manner, conversation, etc.; embarrassment
4.
something that constrains
5.
the act of constraining
6.
the condition of being constrained
7. Linguistics
Most material © 2005, 1997, 1991 by Penguin Random House LLC. Modified entries © 2019
by Penguin Random House LLC and HarperCollins Publishers Ltd
Examples of 'constraint' in a sentence
constraint
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In other languages
constraint
British English: constraint
NOUN /kənˈstreɪnt/
A constraint is something that limits or controls what you can do.
Their decision to abandon the trip was made because of financial constraints.
- American English: constraint /kənsˈtreɪnt/
- Brazilian Portuguese: limitação
- Chinese: 限制
- European Spanish: restricción
- French: contrainte
- German: Beschränkung
- Italian: restrizione
- Japanese: 制約
- Korean: 제약
- European Portuguese: restrição
- Latin American Spanish: restricción
- Thai: ข้อจำกัด
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Definition of constraint from the Collins English Dictionary
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