squeeze (n.)

  1. the act of gripping and pressing firmly; he gave her cheek a playful squeeze

    [ Syn: squeezing ]

  2. a state in which there is a short supply of cash to lend to businesses and consumers and interest rates are high

    [ Syn: credit crunch , liquidity crisis ]

  3. a situation in which increased costs cannot be passed on to the customer; increased expenses put a squeeze on profits'

  4. (slang) a person's girlfriend or boyfriend; she was his main squeeze'

  5. a twisting squeeze; gave the wet cloth a wring

    [ Syn: wring ]

  6. an aggressive attempt to compel acquiescence by the concentration or manipulation of power; she laughed at this sexual power play and walked away

    [ Syn: power play , squeeze play ]

  7. a tight or amorous embrace; come here and give me a big hug

    [ Syn: hug , clinch ]

  8. the act of forcing yourself (or being forced) into or through a restricted space; getting through that small opening was a tight squeeze'

    squeeze (v.)

  1. to compress with violence, out of natural shape or condition; crush an aluminum can; squeeze a lemon

    [ Syn: squash , crush , squelch , mash ]

  2. press firmly; He squeezed my hand'

  3. squeeze like a wedge into a tight space; I squeezed myself into the corner

    [ Syn: wedge , force ]

  4. to cause to do through pressure or necessity, by physical, moral or intellectual means :She forced him to take a job in the city; He squeezed her for information

    [ Syn: coerce , hale , pressure , force ]

  5. obtain by coercion or intimidation; They extorted money from the executive by threatening to reveal his past to the company boss; They squeezed money from the owner of the business by threatening him

    [ Syn: extort , rack , gouge , wring ]

  6. press or force; Stuff money into an envelope; She thrust the letter into his hand

    [ Syn: thrust , stuff , shove ]

  7. squeeze tightly between the fingers; He pinched her behind; She squeezed the bottle

    [ Syn: pinch , twinge , tweet , nip , twitch ]

  8. squeeze (someone) tightly in your arms, usually with fondness; Hug me, please; They embraced; He hugged her close to him

    [ Syn: embrace , hug , bosom ]

  9. squeeze or press together; she compressed her lips; the spasm contracted the muscle

    [ Syn: compress , constrict , compact , contract , press ]

The dictionary is based on the WordNet Electronic Lexical Database.
WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2011 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.