Strict

How to spell strict

6 letters · 1 syllable

How to pronounce strict

What does strict mean?

1. adjectiveDemanding that rules and standards be obeyed exactly, with little tolerance for deviation.

Strict in a sentence

• The new manager enforced a strict policy on late arrivals.

• Their parents were strict about bedtime on school nights.

Where does strict come from?

Language of origin: Latin

This word comes from the Latin strictus, the past participle of the verb stringere, which literally meant 'to draw tight', 'to bind', or 'to press together'. The same root gave Latin the noun for a tightly bound thing, and English borrowed strict in the 1400s with the early sense of 'tightly drawn' or 'narrow' before settling on its modern meaning of rigorously enforced rules and exacting standards. The very same stringere lies behind the words 'stringent', 'constrict', and 'restrict', all of which share the idea of squeezing or tightening. It is also a relative of 'strain' and 'stress', which trace back through the same family of pulling tight. Because the word keeps its compact Latin spelling intact, it is short and regular, with no silent letters or doubled consonants to trip a writer up.

How the word is built

• strict (from Latin strictus, past participle of stringere: to draw tight, bind)