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constrict

Pronunciation: /kənˈstrɪkt/
Translate constrict | into French | into German | into Italian | into Spanish
Definition of constrict

verb

[with object]
  • make narrower, especially by encircling pressure:chemicals that constrict the blood vessels (as adjective constricted)constricted air passages
  • [no object] become narrower:he felt his throat constrict
  • (of a snake) coil round (prey) in order to asphyxiate it: boas constrict and suffocate their prey
  • inhibit or restrict:the fear and the reality of crime constrict many people’s lives

Derivatives

constrictive

adjective

Origin:

mid 18th century: from Latin constrict- 'bound tightly together', from the verb constringere (see constrain)

constrict in other Oxford dictionaries

Definition of constrict in the US English dictionary

Nearby words

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