constrict

English

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin cōnstrictus (“compressed, contracted”), past participle of cōnstringō (“to draw or bind together; to compress”). Doublet of constrain.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /kənˈstɹɪkt/

  • Audio (Southern England):

    (file)

• Rhymes: -ɪkt

Verb

constrict (third-person singular simple present constricts, present participle constricting, simple past and past participle constricted)

1. (ambitransitive) To narrow, especially by application of pressure.

   constrict the airway

   constrict blood vessels

   Clothing that is too tight can constrict blood flow.

2. To coil around (prey) in order to asphyxiate it. (of a snake)

   The snake began to constrict its prey.

3. (figurative) To limit or restrict.

   Synonym: inhibit

Derived terms

• constrictive
• hyperconstrict
• nonconstricting
• reconstrict
• unconstrict
• vasoconstrict

Related terms

• constraint
• constriction
• constrictor
• restrict
• strict

Translations

to narrow

• Bulgarian: свивам (bg) (svivam), стягам (bg) (stjagam), стеснявам (bg) (stesnjavam)
• Czech: zúžit
• Danish: indsnævre
• Finnish: puristaa (fi), supistaa (fi), kuristaa (fi), surkastaa
• German: einengen (de), verengen (de)
• Irish: crap
• Latin: praestringō
• Macedonian: сте́гне (stégne), сте́сни (stésni)
• Old Church Slavonic: гнести (gnesti)
• Portuguese: constringir (pt)
• Spanish: estrechar (es), constringir (es)
• Turkish: daralmak (tr), sıkışmak (tr), sıkmak (tr)

  Ottoman Turkish: صیقمق (sıkmak)

References

• “constrict”, in Lexico, Dictionary.com; Oxford University Press, 2019–2022.
• “constrict”, in Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster, 1996–present.