stricture
noun
Did you know?
Stricture has meant many things through the centuries, and its "restriction" meaning—probably the most common one today—is actually the most recent. High-school teachers often put strictures on texting during class. Cities concerned about their murder rate have slapped strictures on the possession of handguns. And the United Nations may vote to put strictures on arms sales to a country that keeps violating international treaties. With the meaning "strong criticism", stricture is slightly old-fashioned today, but it's still used by intellectuals. So, for example, an article may amount to a harsh stricture on the whole medical profession, or an art review may just express the critic's strictures on sentimental paintings of cute little houses with glowing windows.
Examples of stricture in a Sentence
Karim Sadjadpour, Foreign Affairs, 14 Oct. 2025
Rebelling against the strictures of ballet, barefoot and in loose, flowing tunics, Isadora would strike ancient Greek poses and sway and turn to-and-fro as if driven by currents of wind and ocean, a force of nature herself.
—Guillermo Perez, Miami Herald, 7 Oct. 2025
Mae was a hoarder and a severe hypochondriac, who, despite Christian Science’s stricture against traditional medicine, took barbiturates daily for anxiety.
—Rachel Syme, New Yorker, 29 Sep. 2025
Removing the old customs and strictures led not to a flowering of virtue but to mass outbreaks of revenge.
—Paul Kingsnorth, Harpers Magazine, 19 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for stricture
Cite this Entry
“Stricture.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/stricture. Accessed 31 Oct. 2025.
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stricture
noun
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stricture
noun
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