Synonyms for constraint
Most common
All synonyms
Noun
1. Restraint
restraint, restriction, necessity, force, pressure, obligation, compulsion, confinement, stricture, coercion, urgency, reserve, duress, modesty, enforcement, violence
Other
Definitions
- n. 1
Something that constrains; a restriction.
An engineer must recognize the difference between a constraint (to work within) and a problem (to be eliminated via resolution).
Forms
- Plural
- constraints → restraints, restrictions, necessities, forces…
Choose the right word
Constraint implies strong binding force; as, the constraint of necessity; the constraint of fear. Compulsion is always produced by some active agent; a constraint may be laid upon us by the forms of civil society, or by other outward circumstances.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)
Example sentences
- obligation It is the obligation of every worker to pay taxes.
- necessity He said that necessity is the mother of invention.
- restriction This is not protection. This is just restriction.
- restraint She was angry, but she spoke with restraint.
Popularity over time
| Word | 1850 → 2019 | Trend |
|---|---|---|
| constraint | rising | |
| obligation | steady | |
| necessity | falling | |
| restriction | steady | |
| restraint | falling | |
| constrainment | steady |
Use in printed books, per decade from 1850 to 2019.
By length
- 5 letters
- force1
- 6 letters
- duress2
- 7 letters
- reserve2, forcing2, urgency3, modesty3
- 8 letters
- pressure2, violence3, coercion3
- 9 letters
- necessity4, restraint2, stricture2
- 10 letters
- obligation4, compulsion3
- 11 letters
- enforcement3, restriction3, confinement3
- 13 letters
- constrainment
The small number after each word is its number of syllables (duress2 = 2 syllables).
In other languages
- Français
- contrainte
- Italiano
- costrizione
- Español
- restricción
- Deutsch
- Zwang