bridle

verb

Definition of bridlenext
as in to control
to keep from exceeding a desirable degree or level (as of expression) try to bridle your criticism next time so that it is helpful and not hurtful

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Synonym Chooser

How does the verb bridle contrast with its synonyms?

Some common synonyms of bridle are check, curb, and restrain. While all these words mean "to hold back from or control in doing something," bridle implies keeping under control by subduing or holding in.

bridle an impulse to throw the book down

Where would check be a reasonable alternative to bridle?

The meanings of check and bridle largely overlap; however, check implies restraining or impeding a progress, activity, or impetus.

trying to check government spending

When could curb be used to replace bridle?

Although the words curb and bridle have much in common, curb suggests an abrupt or drastic checking.

learn to curb your appetite

When would restrain be a good substitute for bridle?

The words restrain and bridle are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, restrain suggests holding back by force or persuasion from acting or from going to extremes.

restrained themselves from laughing

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of bridle Gilliam sometimes bridled at the number of voices in the room. — Jack Lang, New York Times, 3 June 2026 For long stretches, she was denied access to books and bridled against the monotony and regulation of institutional life. — Margaret Talbot, New Yorker, 26 Jan. 2026 That gave it the ability to raise its own funds, and freedom from the narrow interests of lawmakers, who would bridle at any attempts to move jobs out of their districts. — Danielle Chemtob, Forbes.com, 26 June 2025 Weaker firms may bridle at the costs of compliance; some will go out of business. — James K. Galbraith, Foreign Affairs, 14 Jan. 2019 See All Example Sentences for bridle
Recent Examples of Synonyms for bridle
  1. control
  2. regulate
  3. curb
  4. restrain
  5. contain
  6. keep
  7. tame
  8. measure
Verb
  • During an operation, a surgeon controls robotic arms fitted with small instruments while viewing the surgical area through a three-dimensional vision system.
    — Atharva Gosavi, Interesting Engineering, 30 Aug. 2026
  • Japanese doctors have advised patients reporting rashes or difficulty controlling bowels after frequent use to stop until symptoms clear, per the AP.
    — Hanna Wickes, Sacbee.com, 29 Aug. 2026
Definition of control
Verb
  • Most Popular For Holey, skincare shouldn’t overpower the skin, but support it in regulating itself.
    — Bella Webb, Vogue, 28 Aug. 2026
  • They’re regulated on the federal level by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, or CFTC.
    — Marshall Cohen, CNN Money, 28 Aug. 2026
Definition of regulate
Verb
  • After all, why wouldn’t someone want to take one that could boost their fitness recovery, combat aging, curb hunger and trigger fat loss?
    — Lori Youmshajekian, Scientific American, 1 Sep. 2026
  • California lawmakers advance sweeping bills to curb Big Tech’s power, targeting addictive social media, artificial intelligence in the workplace and voracious data centers amid mounting public anxiety over technology’s harms.
    — Queenie Wong, Los Angeles Times, 1 Sep. 2026
Definition of curb
Verb
  • Appropriately so, given the placid recent range and the clockwork mechanics of sector rotation and low-correlation restraining index-level volatility.
    — Michael Santoli, CNBC, 31 Aug. 2026
  • This was the context for Justice Brewer’s remarks about Philip sober restraining Philip drunk.
    — Daniel Immerwahr, New Yorker, 31 Aug. 2026
Definition of restrain
Verb
  • The lawsuit filed by two former employees contains allegations that are false, misleading, and unsupported by credible evidence.
    — Devon Henderson, New York Times, 2 Sep. 2026
  • The lawsuit, first reported by the Times of San Diego, contains previously unreported details about the shooting and the events leading up to it.
    — Will Carless, USA Today, 2 Sep. 2026
Definition of contain
Verb
  • In a rebuttal argument, prosecutor Marc DiGiacomo pointed to a scrapbook Davis kept containing articles about Shakur.
    — Jonathan Landrum Jr, Chicago Tribune, 1 Sep. 2026
  • Details of the contract have been mostly kept secret, as both companies said the agreement contained confidential business information.
    — Sydney Sasser, Arkansas Online, 1 Sep. 2026
Definition of keep
Verb
  • The Salt River's first major dam, Roosevelt Dam, was completed in 1911 in an effort to tame erratic flows and wrangle its water for the nascent farming communities downstream.
    — Alex Hager, NPR, 31 Aug. 2026
  • The composure of Amélie, and the decidedly wild and clownish manner in which she’s painted, can’t be tamed into order, elegance, or beauty.
    — Zachary Fine, New Yorker, 31 Aug. 2026
Definition of tame
Verb
  • The minimum safe thickness is a threshold that measures a tank’s ability to contain the pressure of the liquid and support the tank’s weight, the report said.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 28 Aug. 2026
  • These supernovas were used as a kind of cosmological measuring stick to uncover a mysterious force called dark energy that was causing the universe to expand — a discovery that earned the Nobel Prize in 2011.
    — Joe Palca, NPR, 28 Aug. 2026
Definition of measure

Browse Nearby Words

bridges
bridle
bridled
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Bridle.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bridle. Accessed 5 Sep. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on bridle

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about bridle

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