restriction
Pluralrestrictions
- 1A rule or limit that controls what you are allowed to do.
Like a fence that keeps you from going somewhere.
The library has a restriction on how many books you can borrow.
New restrictions made it harder to travel during the storm.
Similarlimit, limitation, regulation, constraint, control
Note
- 2The act of limiting something, or the state of being limited.
Like tying something up so it cannot move freely.
The restriction of free speech worried many citizens.
She hated the restriction of wearing a tight cast for weeks.
Similarlimitation, curtailment, constraint, control
Oppositefreedom
Note
- 3The way a cell breaks down DNA that does not belong to it.
Like a guard who tears up any letter that does not have the right stamp.
In bacteria, restriction destroys the DNA of attacking viruses.
Scientists study how restriction protects cells from foreign DNA.
Note
Practice
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Origin
It came through Middle English and Old French from Late Latin "restrictiō", from Latin "restringō". It can also be seen as "restrict" plus "-ion".