DictionarysnubSudden restraint
verb

snub

To stop or restrain movement abruptly.

She snubs the rope around a post to stop the boat.

Etymology

The older word concerns cutting short or checking. The movement sense preserves that sudden check, as when a rope restrains a moving object.

More examples

  • The handler snubs the lead before the animal moves farther.
  • He snubbed the line as the load began to swing.
  • The sudden tension snubs the cart's movement.

Forms

snub · snubs · snubbed · snubbing

Similar words

check
Check broadly restrains motion; snub suggests a sudden stop, often with a rope.
arrest
Arrest means stop movement; snub often describes checking a moving load with a line.