Standard Lemma guide

restrict

adj · verb · 7 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • /ɹɪˈstɹɪkt/
  • Southern-England: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • rhymes with -ɪkt
  • CMU ARPABET: R IY0 S T R IH1 K T Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

adj

Meaning 1

Restricted.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: obsolete

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

verb

Meaning 2

To restrain within boundaries; to limit; to confine

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Examples

  • After suffering diahrroea, the patient was restricted to a diet of rice, cold meat, and yoghurt.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

verb

Meaning 3

To consider (a function) as defined on a subset of its original domain.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: specifically

Topics: mathematics, sciences

Examples

  • If we restrict sine to #92;left#91;-#92;frac#92;pi2,#92;frac#92;pi2#92;right#93;, we can define its inverse.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

4

verb

Meaning 4

make more specific

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • qualify these remarks

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: qualify

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: modify

5

verb

Meaning 5

place limits on (extent or access)

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • restrict the use of this parking lot
  • limit the time you can spend with your friends

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: restrain, trammel, limit, bound, confine, throttle

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: control, hold in, hold, contain, check, curb, moderate

Narrower terms: reduce, tighten, tie, gate, draw the line, draw a line, mark off, mark out, rule, harness, rein, baffle, regulate, hamper, halter, cramp, strangle, stiffen, tighten up, constrain, clamp down, crack down, inhibit, restrain, encumber, cumber

6

verb

Meaning 6

place restrictions on

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • curtail drinking in school

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: curtail, curb, cut back

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: limit, circumscribe, confine

Narrower terms: abridge, immobilize, immobilise

7

verb

Meaning 7

place under restrictions; limit access to

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • This substance is controlled

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: derestrict

Broader terms: control, hold in, hold, contain, check, curb, moderate

Narrower terms: classify, taboo, scant, skimp, localize, localise

History

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin restrictus, perfect passive participle of restringō (“draw back tightly; restrain, restrict”), from re- (“back, again”) + stringō (“press, tighten, compress”). Doublet of ristretto as an adjective.

Across languages

Translations

70 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Arabic: حَدَّ (ḥadda) — to restrain within bounds
  • Arabic: حَدَّدَ (ḥaddada) — to restrain within bounds
  • Asturian: restrinxir — to restrain within bounds
  • Belarusian: абмяжо́ўваць (abmjažówvacʹ) — to restrain within bounds
  • Belarusian: абмежава́ць (abmježavácʹ) — to restrain within bounds
  • Bulgarian: огранича́вам (ograničávam) — to restrain within bounds
  • Bulgarian: огранича́ (ograničá) — to restrain within bounds
  • Catalan: restringir — to restrain within bounds
  • Chinese Mandarin: 限制 (xiànzhì) — to restrain within bounds
  • Chinese Mandarin: 制限 (zhìxiàn) — to restrain within bounds
  • Czech: omezovat — to restrain within bounds
  • Czech: omezit — to restrain within bounds
  • Danish: begrænse — to restrain within bounds
  • Dutch: beperken — to restrain within bounds
  • Dutch: begrenzen — to restrain within bounds
  • Finnish: rajoittaa — to restrain within bounds
  • Finnish: pysyä jossakin — to restrain within bounds
  • French: restreindre — to restrain within bounds
  • French: limiter — to restrain within bounds
  • Galician: restrinxir — to restrain within bounds
  • German: beschränken — to restrain within bounds
  • German: begrenzen — to restrain within bounds
  • German: restringieren — to restrain within bounds
  • Hebrew: הִגְבִּיל (higbíl) — to restrain within bounds
  • Hungarian: korlátoz — to restrain within bounds
  • Hungarian: szűkít — to restrain within bounds
  • Hungarian: leszűkít — to restrain within bounds
  • Hungarian: megszorít — to restrain within bounds
  • Irish: teorannaigh — to restrain within bounds
  • Italian: restringere — to restrain within bounds
  • Italian: limitare — to restrain within bounds
  • Japanese: 制限する (seigen suru) — to restrain within bounds
  • Korean: 제한하다 (jehanhada) — to restrain within bounds
  • Macedonian: ограничува (ograničuva) — to restrain within bounds
  • Macedonian: ограничи (ograniči) — to restrain within bounds
  • Māori: whakatina — to restrain within bounds
  • Māori: aukati — to restrain within bounds
  • Māori: rāhui — to restrain within bounds
  • Māori: hamaruru — to restrain within bounds
  • Māori: nati — to restrain within bounds
  • Norwegian Bokmål: begrense — to restrain within bounds
  • Polish: ograniczać — to restrain within bounds
  • Polish: ograniczyć — to restrain within bounds
  • Portuguese: restringir — to restrain within bounds
  • Portuguese: limitar — to restrain within bounds
  • Romanian: a restrânge — to restrain within bounds
  • Romanian: a limita — to restrain within bounds
  • Russian: ограни́чивать (ograníčivatʹ) — to restrain within bounds
  • Russian: ограни́чить (ograníčitʹ) — to restrain within bounds
  • Serbo-Croatian: огранича́вати — to restrain within bounds
  • Serbo-Croatian: огра̀ничити — to restrain within bounds
  • Serbo-Croatian: ograničávati — to restrain within bounds
  • Serbo-Croatian: ogràničiti — to restrain within bounds
  • Slovak: obmedzovať — to restrain within bounds
  • Slovak: obmedziť — to restrain within bounds
  • Slovak: ohraničovať — to restrain within bounds
  • Slovak: ohraničiť — to restrain within bounds
  • Slovene: omejevati — to restrain within bounds
  • Slovene: omejiti — to restrain within bounds
  • Spanish: restringir — to restrain within bounds
  • Spanish: cortapisar — to restrain within bounds
  • Swedish: inskränka — to restrain within bounds
  • Swedish: begränsa — to restrain within bounds
  • Turkish: sınırlamak — to restrain within bounds
  • Turkish: kısıtlamak — to restrain within bounds
  • Ukrainian: обме́жувати (obméžuvaty) — to restrain within bounds
  • Ukrainian: обмежо́вувати (obmežóvuvaty) — to restrain within bounds
  • Ukrainian: обме́жити (obméžyty) — to restrain within bounds
  • Ukrainian: омежува́ти (omežuváty) — to restrain within bounds
  • Vietnamese: hạn chế — to restrain within bounds