handcuffs.
A fastening consisting of two metal rings, designed to go around a person's wrists, and connected by a chain or hinge.
Meaning & usage
A fastening consisting of two metal rings, designed to go around a person's wrists, and connected by a chain or hinge.
Any abstract constraint, such as rules, regulations, or lack of resources.
They complained that their rules of engagement were handcuffs that guaranteed counterproductivity.
Where this word comes from
1775, from hand + cuff (“end of shirtsleeve”). Possibly influenced by Old English handcops, from hand + cops (“fetter, chains”), but due to lack of continuity (centuries between Old English and modern term), generally analyzed as a re-invention.
plural of handcuff
third-person singular simple present indicative of handcuff
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Definitions, grammatical labels, IPA, etymology and examples: Wiktionary contributors, extracted by Kaikki / Wiktextract. Adapted under CC BY-SA 4.0. Selected fields and authored examples are shown; third-party quotations and audio are omitted. See contributor history.
Last enriched 2026-09-10. Definitions are in English. Romanizations are shown when supplied by the source; syllable estimates are omitted for unsupported scripts.