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squeeze
[ skweez ]
verb (used with object)
- to press forcibly together; compress.
- to apply pressure to in order to extract juice, sap, or the like:
The tool is used to squeeze an orange.
- to force out, extract, or procure by pressure:
For this cocktail, first squeeze the juice from a pineapple.
- to thrust forcibly; force by pressure; cram:
I squeezed three suits into a small suitcase and now I'm afraid to unpack.
Synonyms: , , ,
- to fit into a small or crowded space or timespan:
The doctor will try to squeeze you in between appointments.
- to enclose (another person's hand, arm, etc.) in one's hand and apply pressure as a token of affection, friendship, sympathy, or the like:
His father squeezed his hand and wished him luck.
- to give (someone) a hug.
- to threaten, intimidate, harass, or oppress (a person) in order to obtain a favor, money, or an advantageous attitude or action.
- to cause financial hardship to:
Manufacturers squeezed by high tariffs have stopped offering international shipping.
- to obtain a facsimile impression of.
- to cause to merge, as two or more lines of traffic into fewer lanes.
- Baseball.
- to enable (a runner on third base) to score on a squeeze play (often followed by in ):
He squeezed him in with a perfect bunt.
- to score (a run) in this way (often followed by in ):
The Dodgers squeezed in a run in the eighth inning.
- Bridge. to force (an opponent) to play a potentially winning card on a trick they cannot win.
verb (used without object)
- to exert a compressing force:
She took his hand and squeezed hard.
- to force one's way through some narrow or crowded place (usually followed by through, in, out, etc.):
It was so crowded we could barely squeeze through the passageway.
- to merge or come together.
noun
- the act or fact of squeezing or the fact of being squeezed:
It'll be a bit of a squeeze to get them all in the same taxi.
- a clasping of one's hand around another's hand, arm, etc., as a token of affection, friendship, sympathy, or the like.
- a hug or close embrace.
- a troubled financial condition, especially caused by a shortage or restriction, as of credit or funds.
- a small quantity or amount of anything obtained by squeezing:
It just needs a squeeze of lemon juice.
- Slang. a sweetheart:
his main squeeze.
- a facsimile impression of an inscription or the like, obtained by pressing some plastic substance over or around it.
- Bridge. a play or circumstance whereby an opponent is forced to waste or discard a potentially winning card.
- an act of threatening, intimidating, harassing, or oppressing a person or persons to obtain a favor, money, or an advantageous attitude or action:
gangsters putting the squeeze on small businesses.
- money or a favor obtained in such a way.
squeeze
/ ɾː /
verb
- to grip or press firmly, esp so as to crush or distort; compress
- to crush or press (something) so as to extract (a liquid)
to squeeze an orange
to squeeze the juice from an orange
- to apply gentle pressure to, as in affection or reassurance
he squeezed her hand
- to push or force in a confined space
to squeeze through a crowd
to squeeze six lettuces into one box
- to hug closely
- to oppress with exacting demands, such as excessive taxes
- to exert pressure on (someone) in order to extort (something): to squeeze money out of a victim by blackmail
- intr to yield under pressure
- to make an impression of (a coin, etc) in a soft substance
- bridge whist to lead a card that forces (opponents) to discard potentially winning cards
noun
- the act or an instance of squeezing or of being squeezed
- a hug or handclasp
- a crush of people in a confined space
- a condition of restricted credit imposed by a government to counteract price inflation
- an impression, esp of a coin, etc, made in a soft substance
- an amount extracted by squeezing
add a squeeze of lemon juice
- commerce any action taken by a trader or traders on a market that forces buyers to make purchases and prices to rise
- informal.pressure brought to bear in order to extort something (esp in the phrase put the squeeze on )
- Also calledsqueeze play bridge whist a manoeuvre that forces opponents to discard potentially winning cards
- informal.a person with whom one is having a romantic relationship
Derived Forms
- ˈܱ, noun
- ˈܱ, adjective
Other Word Forms
- ܱ· noun
- ܱ·Բ· adverb
- ·ٱ·ܱ verb (used with object) intersqueezed intersqueezing
- ܲ·ܱ adjective
Word History and Origins
Origin of squeeze1
Word History and Origins
Origin of squeeze1
Idioms and Phrases
- main squeeze
- put the arm (squeeze) on
- tight squeeze
Example Sentences
I make Banana Cake and have it covered and ready in the icebox for a week when I have time to squeeze fresh pink grapefruit juice for both breakfast and sunset cocktails.
Development, as well as the drought, may have put a squeeze on these populations.
The problem with “Stranger Things: The First Shadow” is that it’s as if an entire new season of the series had been squeezed into a 2-hour, 45-minute stage play — roughly the length of three episodes.
She decided that was the sensible option - instead of squeezing in another WTA clay-court event before Madrid - as she continues to manage a foot injury.
Credit Blake for finding a way to squeeze out those extra wins.
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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
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