to shackle
- verb
- /ˈʃækəl/
- My body may be shackled, but my mind wanders free.
- shackled feet
You didn't drag them there and shackle them to their dorm bed.
- You didn't drag them there and shackle them to their dorm bed.
- They figured out more ways to handshake, hand to to, to shackle the artist to the label.
Examples
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However, these forces are shackled, and action must be taken to liberate them.
Academic text (2005) -
These outdated laws shackled the citizens' ability to express their opinions freely.
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Why do you shackle yourself to her?
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We allow faulty expectations to shackle us from doing as we please.
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There's no reason we need to be shackled by the strictures of the employee-employer relationship.
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She felt shackled by the expectations of her family and longed for independence.
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Fear can shackle us from pursuing our dreams and achieving our goals.
Synonyms
To fasten something with a key so other people cannot open it
To make someone stay in one place or situation
Put someone in prison as a punishment or keep them locked up
To put metal rings that lock around someone's wrists to stop them moving
Hold a person or thing so it cannot move freely
To put metal bands around someone's wrists to stop their hands from moving
To limit what someone can do or how they can act
Cause a delay that stops activity or movement
To tie an animal or object so it cannot move away
To tie someone or something with a chain to keep them from moving
To limit someone's freedom because they have responsibilities
To stop a person or thing from moving, acting freely and making choices
To tie or chain someone's feet to stop them moving freely
Stop someone from acting or making decisions
To lock someone inside a room or building against their will
To put locked metal rings around someone's wrists to stop them moving
To tie someone's arms or legs so they cannot move
To tie someone with chains or hold them under close control
To stop someone completely from acting freely
To hold back or make it hard for someone to act freely
Antonyms
How Restrained
Surface Forms
Etymology
Shackle comes from an old English word sceacel that meant 'metal cuffs' used on the hands or feet, so to shackle someone originally meant to put them in chains or cuffs. That's why today shackle can mean both to tie someone up and to limit their freedom or actions.