shackle

[ shak-uhl ]

/ ˈʃæk əl /

SEE SYNONYMS FOR shackle ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a ring or other fastening, as of iron, for securing the wrist, ankle, etc.; fetter.

a hobble or fetter for a horse or other animal.

the U-shaped bar of a padlock, one end of which is pivoted or sliding, the other end of which can be released, as for passing through a staple, and then fastened, as for securing a hasp.

any of various fastening or coupling devices.

Often shackles. anything that serves to prevent freedom of procedure, thought, etc.

verb (used with object), shack·led, shack·ling.

to put a shackle or shackles on; confine or restrain by a shackle or shackles.

to fasten or couple with a shackle.

to restrain in action, thought, etc., as by restrictions; restrict the freedom of.

Origin of shackle

before 1000; (noun) Middle English schakle, schakyl(le); Old English sceacel fetter; cognate with Low German schakel hobble, Old Norse skǫkull wagon pole, (v.) late Middle English schaklyn, derivative of the noun

SYNONYMS FOR shackle

1 chain, manacle, handcuff, gyve, bilboes.

5 obstacle, obstruction, impediment, encumbrance.

6 restrict, fetter, chain, handcuff, hobble.

8 trammel, impede, slow, stultify, dull.

SEE SYNONYMS FOR shackle ON THESAURUS.COM

ANTONYMS FOR shackle

6, 8 liberate, free.

SEE ANTONYMS FOR shackle ON THESAURUS.COM

OTHER WORDS FROM shackle

shack·ler, noun

Words nearby shackle

shache, shack, shack up, shack-tapping, shacket, shackle, shackleton, shacko, shackup, shacky, shad

Example sentences from the Web for shackle

Conservatives distrust public officials and want to shackle them with detailed rules.

Red Tape Is Strangling Good Samaritans |Philip K. Howard |December 27, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
An institution that might have protected us two hundred years ago has become a shackle.

After Health-Care Ruling, Time to Reconsider Supreme Court’s Power |David R. Dow |July 8, 2012 |DAILY BEAST
So given all the evidence against it, why shackle women at all?

Stop Shackling Pregnant Prisoners! |Alex Berg |September 5, 2011 |DAILY BEAST
Rob merely knocked out a shackle pin and let the whole thing go.

The Boy Scouts for Uncle Sam |John Henry Goldfrap

Was it to do us good or ill, to give us liberty, or to shackle us?

Travels in Tartary, Thibet, and China |Evariste Regis Huc
Now, Tom, let the chain out; I will jump below and knock out the shackle.

A Chapter of Adventures |G. A. Henty
My loved and lovely Soul has worn it through the ages: manacle, shackle.

I, Mary MacLane |Mary MacLane
His astonishment increased, and his inclination to shackle me with the trappings of his own grandeur grew more intense.

Lady Eureka, v. 1 (of 3) |Robert Folkestone Williams

British Dictionary definitions for shackle

shackle

/ (ˈʃækəl) /

noun

(often plural) a metal ring or fastening, usually part of a pair used to secure a person's wrists or ankles; fetter

(often plural) anything that confines or restricts freedom

a rope, tether, or hobble for an animal

a U-shaped bracket, the open end of which is closed by a bolt (shackle pin), used for securing ropes, chains, etc

verb (tr)

to confine with or as if with shackles

to fasten or connect with a shackle

Derived forms of shackle

shackler, noun

Word Origin for shackle

Old English sceacel; related to Dutch schakel, Old Norse skokull wagon pole, Latin cingere to surround

BROWSE DICTIONARY

Learning

shackle

noun

verb (used with object), shack·led, shack·ling.

Origin of shackle

SYNONYMS FOR shackle

ANTONYMS FOR shackle

OTHER WORDS FROM shackle

Words nearby shackle

Example sentences from the Web for shackle

British Dictionary definitions for shackle

noun

verb (tr)

Derived forms of shackle

Word Origin for shackle

BROWSE DICTIONARY

Learning

shackle

noun

verb (used with object), shack·led, shack·ling.

Origin of shackle

SYNONYMS FOR shackle

ANTONYMS FOR shackle

OTHER WORDS FROM shackle

Words nearby shackle

Words related to shackle

Example sentences from the Web for shackle

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noun

verb (tr)

Derived forms of shackle

Word Origin for shackle

British Dictionary definitions for shackle