strait

strait
I. adjective Etymology: Middle English, from Anglo-French estreit, from Latin strictus strait, strict, from past participle of stringere Date: 13th century 1. archaic strict, rigorous 2. archaic a. narrow b. limited in space or time c. closely fitting ; constricted, tight 3. a. causing distress ; difficult b. limited as to means or resources • straitly adverbstraitness noun II. adverb Date: 13th century obsolete in a close or tight manner III. noun Date: 14th century 1. a. archaic a narrow space or passage b. a comparatively narrow passageway connecting two large bodies of water — often used in plural but sing. in constr. c. isthmus 2. a situation of perplexity or distress — often used in plural <
in dire straits
>
Synonyms: see juncture

New Collegiate Dictionary. 2001.

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  • Strait — Strait, n.; pl. {Straits}. [OE. straight, streit, OF. estreit, estroit. See {Strait}, a.] 1. A narrow pass or passage. [1913 Webster] He brought him through a darksome narrow strait To a broad gate all built of beaten gold. Spenser. [1913… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Strait — Strait, a. [Compar. {Straiter}; superl. {Straitest}.] [OE. straight, streyt, streit, OF. estreit, estroit, F. [ e]troit, from L. strictus drawn together, close, tight, p. p. of stringere to draw tight. See 2nd {Strait}, and cf. {Strict}.] 1.… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • strait — n 1 Strait, sound, channel, passage, narrows can all denote a long and comparatively narrow stretch of water connecting two larger bodies. Strait, often as the plural straits with either singular or plural construction, denotes a relatively short …   New Dictionary of Synonyms

  • Strait — ist der Familienname folgender Personen: George Strait (* 1952), US amerikanischer Musiker George Strait Jr. (George „Bubba“ Strait Jr.; * 1981), US amerikanischer Country Sänger, Songwriter und Rodeocowboy Horace B. Strait (1835–1894), US… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • strait — strait·en; strait·ly; strait·ness; strait; strait·laced·ly; strait·laced·ness; …   English syllables

  • strait — [streıt] n [Date: 1300 1400; Origin: strait narrow (13 20 centuries), from Old French estreit, from Latin strictus; STRICT] 1.) also straits [plural] a narrow passage of water between two areas of land, usually connecting two seas ▪ the Bering… …   Dictionary of contemporary English

  • strait — (n.) mid 14c., narrow, confined space or place, specifically of bodies of water from late 14c., noun use of adj. strait narrow, strict (late 13c.), from O.Fr. estreit (Fr. étroit) tight, close, narrow (also used as a noun), from L. strictus, pp.… …   Etymology dictionary

  • Strait — Strait, a. A variant of {Straight}. [Obs.] [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Strait — Strait, adv. Strictly; rigorously. [Obs.] Shak. [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Strait — Strait, v. t. To put to difficulties. [Obs.] Shak. [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • strait — [n1] crisis, difficulty bewilderment, bind, bottleneck*, choke point*, contingency, crossroad, dilemma, distress, embarrassment, emergency, exigency, extremity, hardship, hole*, mess*, mystification, pass, perplexity, pinch*, plight, predicament …   New thesaurus

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