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restrictive

restrictive

52 4.7
Limits what people can do by rules or laws
  • adjective
  • /rɪˈstrɪktɪv/
translation icon : restrictivo
  • Relative to the United States, Japan has more restrictive laws concerning pornography.
  • a restrictive environment
  • restrictive laws
  • restrictive policies

Or more realistically, some of those very restrictive diets are good short term.

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Examples

  • As always, our mission is to provide the most appropriate education for each child in the least restrictive environment.

  • And you want to come up with the least restrictive, most fun, easy diet to do.

  • I just thought you had to be on a really restrictive diet to look like you guys.

  • Even then, the government must opt for the least restrictive way in which to further that interest.

    Academic text (2011)
  • And for me it felt very restrictive, unrealistic.

  • It took some time to realize that initially they were restrictive in their application.

  • By making ongoing eligibility for hospice services more restrictive, the new policy is, of course, designed to save money.

    Academic text (2011)
  • Did affected communities form coalitions to protest against restrictive policies or lobby for changes in the laws?

    Academic text (1999)
  • Increases in ambient pollution will likely occur unless more restrictive environmental policies are adopted and enforced.

    Academic text (1991)
  • The school promotes learning in the least restrictive environment to support every student's needs.

Synonyms

strict
vsrestrictive
359 3.2

Not allowing any exceptions and requiring rules to be followed exactly

is about setting limits rather than enforcing harsh obedience
narrow
vsrestrictive
181 2.6

Limited in range or what it covers, often about ideas

is about active control or rules that make things not allowed
stringent
vsrestrictive
40 6.9

Very strict rules or limits that must be followed

focuses more generally on limiting what is possible or allowed
repressive
vsrestrictive
30 7.0

Limiting people's freedom to speak or act

can include nonpolitical or neutral limits, not only suppression of expression
limiting
vsrestrictive
3 3.5

Keeping someone or something from having full freedom and many choices

is focused more on controlling what is allowed rather than just setting limits
confining
vsrestrictive
1 5.6

That limits someone's freedom or ability to move

is about limiting possibilities broadly, not only physical or spatial limits
regulative
vsrestrictive
  • Formal
1 6.8

Helping to control actions by rules or laws

covers limiting by any means, not only formal rules or laws
constricting
vsrestrictive
1 6.5

Causes people to feel limited and unable to act freely

is about intentional limits put in place rather than situational pressure
constraining
vsrestrictive
1 6.3

Makes someone or something unable to act freely

is broader, applying to any limit on what is possible or allowed
constrictive
vsrestrictive
1 7.1

Making people or groups have less freedom to grow

is the general idea of limiting possibilities rather than a specific effect
proscriptive
vsrestrictive
  • Formal
1 8.4

Stopping or limiting actions by law

is broader, including less formal limits or controls as well
constricted
vsrestrictive
5.2

Made narrower or tighter by pressure

focuses on active control or rules that set what is allowed
narrowing
vsrestrictive
6.0

Becoming more limited and reducing people's choices or freedoms

describes a set limit or control rather than a gradual reduction

Antonyms

permissive
  • Jargon
14 4.9

Not strict and giving a lot of freedom about what people do

Not making strict rules and allowing a lot of freedom

Compounds

restrictive clause
  • Specialized
1 7.5

A part of a sentence that gives essential information about a noun and is not set off by commas

How Restrictive

draconian
  • Formal
28 8.9
strict
359 3.2
restrictive
52 4.7
moderate
415 3.3
lenient
32 4.4
permissive
  • Jargon
14 4.9

Surface Forms

restrictive positive

Morphology

restrictive = restrict (transparent) = restrict + ive

A standard adjectival formation from the verb 'restrict' with the suffix '-ive', meaning 'serving to restrict'.

Etymology

Restrictive comes from re- ('back') and strict (from an old word meaning 'to tighten'). So something restrictive 'tightens back' what is allowed, making choices smaller or more limited.