Constraint

How to spell constraint

10 letters · 2 syllables

How to pronounce constraint

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does constraint mean?

1. nounA limitation or restriction that confines what can be done.

Constraint in a sentence

• The tight budget was the main constraint on the project.

• Time was the only constraint the team could not work around.

Where does constraint come from?

Language of origin: Latin

This word traces back to the Latin verb constringere, meaning 'to bind together' or 'to tie tightly', formed from con- 'together' and stringere 'to draw tight, bind'. Latin speakers used the related noun to describe a forced binding or compulsion. It passed into Old French as constreindre, with the noun constreinte covering the idea of force, compulsion, or restriction. English borrowed it in the late 1300s, and the modern spelling keeps that French-flavoured -aint ending, which is also the spelling trap, since the sound suggests no clear vowel order. The same stringere root binds it to relatives such as 'strict', 'restrict', and 'stringent', all carrying the sense of being drawn tight.

How the word is built

• con- (together)
• strain (from Latin stringere: to bind or draw tight)
• -t (noun ending)