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Hamper vs Trammel vs Clog vs Fetter vs Shackle vs Manacle vs Hog-tie

Hampertrammelclogfettershacklemanaclehog-tie are comparable when meaning to hinder or impede one so that one cannot move, progress, or act freely.

To hamper is to encumber or embarrass by or as if by an impediment or restraining influence.

To trammel is more specifically to entangle or confine as if enmeshed in a net.

To clog is to hamper the movement, often the ascent, of someone or something by something extraneous, encumbering, or useless.

To fetter is to confine or restrain so that one’s freedom or power to progress is lost.

To shackle and to manacle differ little in their extended use, both implying such interference with one’s freedom that one feels that movement, progress, or action is impossible if the bonds are not broken.

Hog-tie usually implies such restraint as effectively interferes with one’s ability to move, act, or function.