I. squeeze 1 S3 /skwiːz/ BrE AmE verb
[ Date: 1500-1600 ; Origin: quease 'to press, squeeze' (15-17 centuries) , from Old English cwysan ]
1 . PRESS [transitive] to press something firmly together with your fingers or hand:
She smiled as he squeezed her hand.
He squeezed the trigger, but nothing happened.
2 . PRESS OUT LIQUID [transitive] to get liquid from something by pressing it:
Squeeze the oranges.
squeeze something out
Try to squeeze a bit more out.
squeeze something on/onto something
Squeeze a bit of lemon juice onto the fish.
3 . SMALL SPACE [intransitive, transitive always + adverb/preposition] to try to make something fit into a space that is too small, or to try to get into such a space SYN squash
squeeze into
Five of us squeezed into the back seat.
squeeze through/past
He had squeezed through a gap in the fence.
squeeze somebody/something in
We could probably squeeze in a few more people.
4 . squeeze your eyes shut to close your eyes very tightly
5 . JUST SUCCEED [intransitive always + adverb/preposition] to succeed, win, or pass a test by a very small amount so that you only just avoid failure:
Greece just squeezed through into the next round.
6 . LIMIT MONEY [transitive] to strictly limit the amount of money that is available to a company or organization:
The government is squeezing the railways’ investment budget.
squeeze somebody/something ↔ in ( also squeeze something into something ) phrasal verb
to manage to meet someone or do something although you are very busy:
How do you manage to squeeze so much into one day?
I can squeeze you in at four o'clock.
squeeze something ↔ out phrasal verb
1 . to do something so that someone or something is no longer included or able to continue:
If budgets are cut, vital research may be squeezed out.
2 . to squeeze something wet in order to remove the liquid from it:
Squeeze the cloth out first.
3 . squeeze something out of somebody to force someone to tell you something:
See if you can squeeze more information out of them.
squeeze up phrasal verb British English
to move close to the person next to you to make space for someone else
• • •
THESAURUS
▪ press to push something down or against a surface with your fingers or foot:
The doctor gently pressed her stomach.
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To move forward, press the accelerator.
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I pressed ‘delete’ and started again.
▪ squeeze to press something inwards from both sides:
It’s one of those balls that make a funny noise when you squeeze it.
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Squeeze the lemon and add the juice to the sauce.
▪ squash to press something against a surface accidentally and damage it by making it flat:
Don’t squash the tomatoes.
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He sat on my hat and squashed it.
▪ crush to press something very hard so that it breaks into very small pieces, or is very badly damaged:
Crush two cloves of garlic.
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The front of the car was completely crushed in the crash.
▪ mash to press cooked vegetables or fruit until they are soft and smooth:
Mash the potatoes while they are warm.
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Babies love mashed bananas.
▪ grind to press something solid until it becomes a powder, using a machine or tool:
the machine that grinds the corn
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freshly ground coffee
II. squeeze 2 BrE AmE noun [countable]
1 . a (tight) squeeze a situation in which there is only just enough room for things or people to fit somewhere:
It’ll be a squeeze with six people in the car.
2 .
an act of pressing something firmly with your fingers or hand:
Marty gave her hand a little squeeze.
3 . squeeze of lemon/lime etc a small amount of juice obtained by squeezing a piece of fruit
4 . a situation in which wages, prices, borrowing money etc are strictly controlled or reduced
squeeze on
cuts due to the squeeze on public sector spending
a credit squeeze
All manufacturers are feeling the squeeze (=noticing the effects of a difficult financial situation) .
5 . put the squeeze on somebody informal to try to persuade someone to do something
6 . sb’s (main) squeeze especially American English informal someone’s ↑ boyfriend or ↑ girlfriend