Etymologically
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constraint

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Pronunciation

  • /kənˈstɹeɪnt/[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle English constreinte,[2][3][4] borrowed from Old French constreinte (“binding, constraint, compulsion”),[5][3][6][2] a noun use of the feminine of constreint, the past participle of constreindre (“to constrain”).[5][6][3] Merriam-Webster and Dictionary.com take it from Middle French.[7][8] The participle comes from Vulgar Latin *constrinctus, a popular form of Latin constrictus,[5][3] the past participle of constringō (“to bind together, tie tightly, fetter”), formed from com- (“with, together”) and stringō (“to draw tight”).[3] The modern French word is contrainte.[3] The English noun is related to constrain, constrict and strain.[3][2]

Earliest recorded meaning

Distress, oppression, affliction: about 1374, in Chaucer's Troilus and Criseyde,[5][4] late in the 14th century in Etymonline.[3] The OED also records constraint as the past participle of constrain about 1360, and as an adjective from about 1430 to 1541.[5]

Semantic evolution

The first sense, pressure of trouble or misfortune, was obsolete by the late 16th century.[5][6][3] The sense "coercion, compulsion" is recorded from 1533, in Thomas More,[5][3] and extended in 1607 to the compulsion of circumstances.[5] From 1590, in Spenser's Faerie Queene, it also meant confinement or restriction of liberty.[5] Johnson (1755) defined it as "compulsion; compelling force; violence; act of over-ruling the desire; confinement", quoting Shakespeare's King John.[9] The restraint of natural feelings and behaviour, or a manner that is not natural, is recorded from 1706.[5][3] Physics added a condition brought about in a body by a force (1831, Brewster) and a restriction on the motion of a body in dynamics (1856),[5] and Collins records a sense in linguistics, a general restriction on a rule of sentence formation.[10]

Timeline

  • c. 1374 – oppression, affliction, distress (obsolete by 1579).[5][4]
  • 1533 – coercion, compulsion.[5][3]
  • 1590 – confinement, restriction of liberty.[5]
  • 1607 – compulsion of circumstances.[5]
  • 1706 – the holding back of natural feelings; a forced manner.[5][3]
  • 1831 – in physics, a condition brought about in a body by a force.[5]
  • 1856 – in dynamics, a restriction on the motion of a body.[5]

Meanings

Noun

  1. Something that limits or restricts; a restrictive condition: Budget constraints delayed the new bridge.[10][7]
  2. The use of force or threat to make someone act or to stop them acting; compulsion, coercion.[10][7][5]
  3. The state of being held back or restricted; confinement.[7][5]
  4. The holding back of natural feelings; a stiff, unnatural manner: There was a certain constraint between the two brothers.[10][5]
  5. (physics) A condition that limits the possible motion of a body or system.[5]
  6. (linguistics) A very general restriction on a rule of sentence formation.[10]
  7. (obsolete) Oppression, affliction, distress (c. 1374–1579).[5][6]

Word family

  • nonconstraint
  • unconstraint

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (online 2024), 5th ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  4. ^ a b c Benson, Larry D., Glossarial Concordance to Middle English (Chaucer, Gower), Johns Hopkins University, github.com/jhu-digital-manuscripts/gcme
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
  6. ^ a b c d Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
  7. ^ a b c d Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  8. ^ Dictionary.com Unabridged (2016), based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, New York: Random House
  9. ^ Johnson, Samuel (1755), A Dictionary of the English Language, London; 4th ed. 1773; Johnson's Dictionary Online, ed. Beth Rapp Young et al.
  10. ^ a b c d e Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins