rein in
phrasal verb
reined in; reining in; reins in
1
: to limit or control (someone or something)
Congress must rein in spending.
You had better rein that kid in before she gets hurt.
2
: to make (an animal) stop by using reins
The rider reined in his horse.
Examples of rein in in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
President Lai Ching-te of Taiwan also faces a legislature controlled by opposition lawmakers who have accused his government of wasteful spending and reined in parts of this year’s defense budget.
—
Chris Buckley, New York Times, 13 Feb. 2025
The man who took over Twitter, now X, and slashed its staff by around eighty per cent would take a similarly aggressive tack against bureaucratic inefficiency, reining in budgets and laying off federal employees.
—Kyle Chayka, The New Yorker, 12 Feb. 2025
That did not stop the chorus of voices calling for the agency to be reined in.
—Rob Wile, NBC News, 12 Feb. 2025
Specifically, Vance opposed reining in AI with more rules, which the European Union has done.
—Michael Kan, PCMAG, 11 Feb. 2025
See all Example Sentences for rein in 
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Chris Buckley, New York Times, 13 Feb. 2025
The man who took over Twitter, now X, and slashed its staff by around eighty per cent would take a similarly aggressive tack against bureaucratic inefficiency, reining in budgets and laying off federal employees.
—Kyle Chayka, The New Yorker, 12 Feb. 2025
That did not stop the chorus of voices calling for the agency to be reined in.
—Rob Wile, NBC News, 12 Feb. 2025
Specifically, Vance opposed reining in AI with more rules, which the European Union has done.
—Michael Kan, PCMAG, 11 Feb. 2025
See all Example Sentences for rein in
Dictionary Entries Near rein in
Cite this Entry
“Rein in.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/rein%20in. Accessed 22 Feb. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share