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⇱ strait - WordReference.com Dictionary of English

strait

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UK:**UK and possibly other pronunciationsUK and possibly other pronunciations/ˈstreɪt/US:USA pronunciation: IPA and respellingUSA pronunciation: IPA/streɪt/ ,USA pronunciation: respelling(strāt)


WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026
strait /streɪt/USA pronunciation   n. [countable]
  1. Often, straits. [plural form may be used with a singular verb] a narrow passage of water connecting two large bodies of water:the Strait(s) of Gibraltar.
  2. Often, straits. [plural] a position of difficulty, distress, or need:At the moment she is in dire straits, with no money and no job.
See -strain-.
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026
strait (strāt),USA pronunciation 
  1. Often, straits. (used with a sing. v.) a narrow passage of water connecting two large bodies of water.
  2. Often, straits. a position of difficulty, distress, or need:Ill and penniless, he was in sad straits indeed.
  3. [Archaic.]a narrow passage or area.
  4. an isthmus.

adj. Archaic. 
  1. narrow:Strait is the gate.
  2. affording little space;
    confined in area.
  3. strict, as in requirements or principles.
  • Latin strictus past participle of stringere to bind; see strain1
  • Old French estreit
  • Middle English streit 1150–1200
strait′ly, adv. 
strait′ness, n. 
    2. exigency, pinch, dilemma, predicament, plight. See emergency. 
    2. ease.
Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
strait /streɪt/ n
  1. (often plural) a narrow channel of the sea linking two larger areas of sea
  2. (often plural) a position of acute difficulty (often in the phrase in direordesperate straits)
  3. archaic a narrow place or passage
 adj archaic
  1. (of spaces, etc) affording little room
Etymology: 13th Century: from Old French estreit narrow, from Latin strictus constricted, from stringere to bind tightlyˈstraitly adv ˈstraitness n
'strait' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):

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