stranglehold
stranglehold Lexical Profile
stranglehold Game Scores & Validity
• noun
Complete and oppressive control over a situation, market, or organization that prevents freedom of action or development.
"A small group of tech giants has maintained a stranglehold on the digital advertising market for over a decade."
A grip around the neck of an opponent that restricts breathing, typically illegal in formal wrestling.
"The referee immediately disqualified the wrestler for applying an illegal stranglehold during the match."
• Nearby Words
Word Origin & Etymology
Coined in late 19th-century American English as a wrestling term, combining 'strangle' (from Old French 'estrangler', ultimately from Greek 'strangalan', meaning 'to choke with a halter') and 'hold' (from Old English 'haldan'). Its figurative sense of oppressive dominance or monopoly emerged in the early 20th century.