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leash

leash

48 4.5
A limit on how much someone can do
  • noun
  • /liːʃ/
translation icon : restricción
  • Since the beginning of the Gulf crisis, the leash has been made even shorter.
  • on a short leash

I don't want this to be a leash to control me, the junction fight.

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Examples

  • There was a man holding a German shepherd on a leash, much of which was coiled around his hand.

    Fiction book (1998)
  • And why would the press suddenly feel like they were let off the leash to ask the question?

  • Oh, she kept you on such a short leash.

  • Well, I guess my mom wanted to keep my dad on a shorter leash.

  • In fact, they are kept on the usually tight leash of their nation-state members.

    Academic text (2000)
  • When school starts, you're going to be on a very short leash.

  • She's on a short leash, but has the freedom to move around the cabin.

    Fiction book (1996)
  • Louis had in fact been eager to meet Gem, but the Knights kept Gem on a tight leash in Nice.

  • But in California, you can't let your dogs run off leash on the beach if they're on leash beaches.

  • The owner kept his dog on a short leash to prevent it from running away.

Synonyms

collar
vsleash
67 8.2

A limit placed on what someone or something can do

is a wider concept, not only a specific imposed restriction
restraint
vsleash
44 3.9

A rule or measure that limits what people can do

is often used figuratively to mean control over allowed freedom
tether
vsleash
37 5.4

A rope or chain used to tie an animal so it cannot move far

is more figurative, not restricted to physical ties or areas
lead
vsleash
  • UK
26 4.7

A rope or light chain used to guide an animal

is usually a figurative term for limits on freedom
short leash
vsleash
  • Informal
12 5.7

Close control of someone that allows them little freedom

is more general, meaning any restraint placed on freedom
on a short leash
vsleash
  • Informal
7 7.7

Kept under strict control with little freedom

is a broader idea of imposed limits on personal freedom

Antonyms

1.0

The right to act, speak, or think as you want without being stopped

429 3.3

Being free from unfair rules or control by government

Idioms

on a short leash
  • Informal
7 7.7

Kept under strict control with little freedom

7.1

To want to start doing something very eagerly while being held back

Compounds

short leash
  • Informal
12 5.7

Close control of someone that allows them little freedom

How Restrictive

iron hand
3 6.4
short leash
  • Informal
12 5.7
leash
48 4.5
free rein
15 4.1

Surface Forms

leash singular
leashes plural

Etymology

Leash originally named the strap that held an animal, so it came to mean 'control' or the amount of freedom someone is given; that's why a 'longer leash' means more freedom and a 'tight leash' means strict control.