1. garments with long sleeves that can be tied behind the back, used to restrain people who might harm themselves or others
Usage: medical; psychiatric
2. something that severely limits freedom of action or expression
Usage: figurative

1. to put someone in a straitjacket
2. to severely limit someone's freedom of action
Usage: figurative

Examples

• The hospital kept several straitjackets for emergency situations.
• He felt that the company's rigid policies were like straitjackets on creativity.
• The new regulations straitjacket small businesses with excessive paperwork.
• Mental health facilities rarely use straitjackets anymore.
• The budget constraints straitjacket our ability to expand the program.
• She argued that standardized testing straitjackets teachers and students alike.
• The patient was placed in a straitjacket after becoming violent.