curb

Other forms: curbing; curbed; curbs

The hard thing about learning how to parallel park is trying to get the car close enough to the curb without hitting it. A curb is the edge of the sidewalk beside the road.

When you're using the word curb as a noun, it's the raised edging beside a street. When curb is a verb, it means to restrain or hold back, like when you curb your impulse to laugh while watching a badly acted play. Curb comes from the Latin word for "curve," curvus, which describes the shape of a restraining strap on a horse's head — in the fifteenth century, this band was called a curb.

Definitions of curb

1. noun

   the act of restraining power or action or limiting excess
   synonyms: bridle, check

   type of:

   restraint

   the act of controlling by restraining someone or something
2. noun

   a horse's bit with an attached chain or strap to check the horse
   synonyms: curb bit

   type of:

   bit

   piece of metal held in horse's mouth by reins and used to control the horse while riding
3. verb

   lessen the intensity of; temper; hold in restraint; hold or keep within limits
   synonyms: check, contain, control, hold, hold in, moderate

   types:

   bound, confine, limit, restrain, restrict, throttle, trammel

   place limits on (extent or access)

   conquer, inhibit, stamp down, subdue, suppress

   to put down by force or authority

   damp

   restrain or discourage

   crucify, mortify, subdue

   hold within limits and control

   abnegate, deny

   deny oneself (something); restrain, especially from indulging in some pleasure

   restrict

   place under restrictions; limit access to

   train

   cause to grow in a certain way by tying and pruning it

   catch

   check oneself during an action

   bate

   moderate or restrain; lessen the force of

   thermostat

   control the temperature with a thermostat

   counteract, countercheck

   oppose or check by a counteraction

   blink, blink away, wink

   force to go away by blinking

   reduce, tighten

   narrow or limit

   tie

   limit or restrict to

   gate

   restrict (school boys') movement to the dormitory or campus as a means of punishment

   draw a line, draw the line

   reasonably object (to) or set a limit (on)

   mark off, mark out

   set boundaries to and delimit

   harness, rein, rule

   keep in check

   baffle, regulate

   check the emission of (sound)

   cramp, halter, hamper, strangle

   prevent the progress or free movement of

   dampen, stifle

   smother or suppress

   choke back, choke down, choke off

   suppress

   constrain, stiffen, tighten, tighten up

   restrict

   clamp down, crack down

   repress or suppress (something regarded as undesirable)

   hush, hush up, quieten, shut up, silence, still

   cause to be quiet or not talk

   constrict, inhibit

   limit the range or extent of

   burke

   get rid of, silence, or suppress

   silence

   keep from expression, for example by threats or pressure

   quell, quench, squelch

   suppress or crush completely

   constrain, cumber, encumber, restrain

   hold back

   muffle, repress, smother, stifle, strangle

   conceal or hide

   mortify

   practice self-denial of one's body and appetites

   classify

   declare unavailable, as for security reasons

   taboo

   declare as sacred and forbidden

   trellis

   train on a trellis, as of a vine

   scant, skimp

   limit in quality or quantity

   localise, localize

   restrict something to a particular area

   type of:

   hold back, keep, keep back, restrain

   keep under control; keep in check
4. verb

   place restrictions on
   synonyms: curtail, cut back, restrict

   types:

   abridge

   lessen, diminish, or curtail

   immobilise, immobilize

   cause to be unable to move

   paralyse, paralyze

   cause to be paralyzed and immobile

   stun, stupefy, zonk

   make senseless or dizzy by or as if by a blow

   type of:

   circumscribe, confine, limit

   restrict or confine
5. verb

   put down by force or authority
   synonyms: conquer, inhibit, stamp down, subdue, suppress

   types:

   blink, blink away, wink

   force to go away by blinking

   dampen, stifle

   smother or suppress

   choke back, choke down, choke off

   suppress

   hush, hush up, quieten, shut up, silence, still

   cause to be quiet or not talk

   burke

   get rid of, silence, or suppress

   silence

   keep from expression, for example by threats or pressure

   quell, quench, squelch

   suppress or crush completely

   muffle, repress, smother, stifle, strangle

   conceal or hide

   shush

   silence (someone) by uttering 'shush!'

   choke, suffocate

   suppress the development, creativity, or imagination of

   calm down, lull

   become quiet or less intensive

   shout down

   silence or overwhelm by shouting

   gag, muzzle

   prevent from speaking out

   type of:

   check, contain, control, hold, hold in, moderate

   lessen the intensity of; temper; hold in restraint; hold or keep within limits
6. noun

   an edge between a sidewalk and a roadway consisting of a line of curbstones (usually forming part of a gutter)
   synonyms: curbing, kerb

   type of:

   edge

   a sharp side formed by the intersection of two surfaces of an object
7. verb

   keep to the curb
   “curb your dogs”

   type of:

   constrain, cumber, encumber, restrain

   hold back