control

control

con·trol [control controls controlled controlling] noun, verb   [kənˈtrəʊl]    [kənˈtroʊl]

noun  

POWER
1. uncountable ~ (of/over sb/sth) the power to make decisions about how a country, an area, an organization, etc. is run
• The party is expecting to gain control of the council in the next election.
• The Democrats will probably lose control of Congress.
• A military junta took control of the country.
• The city is in the control of enemy forces.

• The city is under enemy control.

2. uncountable ~ (of/over sb/sth) the ability to make sb/sth do what you want
• The teacher had no control over the children.
• She struggled to keep control of her voice.
• She lost control of her car on the ice.
• He got so angry he lost control (= shouted and said or did things he would not normally do).
• Owing to circumstances beyond our control, the flight to Rome has been cancelled.
• The coach made the team work hard on ball control (= in a ball game).

see also  self-control  

LIMITING/MANAGING

3. uncountable, countable ~ (of/on sth) (often in compounds) the act of restricting, limiting or managing sth; a method of doing this
• traffic control
• talks on arms control
• government controls on trade and industry
• A new advance has been made in the control of malaria.
• Price controls on food were ended.
• a pest control officer

see also  birth control, quality control  

IN MACHINE

4. countable, usually plural the switches and buttons, etc. that you use to operate a machine or a vehicle
• the controls of an aircraft
• the control panel
• the volume control of a CD player
• The co-pilot was at the controls when the plane landed.
• a car with dual control(s) (= one set of controls for the driver and one for the instructor ).

see also  remote control  

IN EXPERIMENT

5. countable (technical) a person, thing or group used as a standard of comparison for checking the results of a scientific experiment; an experiment whose result is known, used for checking working methods
• The study showed that women with the disease have had fewer children than the controls.

• One group was treated with the new drug, and the control group was given a sugar pill.  

PLACE

6. singular a place where orders are given or where checks are made; the people who work in this place
• air traffic control
• We went through passport control and into the departure lounge.

• This is Mission Control calling the space shuttle Discovery.  

ON COMPUTER

7. uncountable (also conˈtrol key singular) (on a computer keyboard) a key that you press when you want to perform a particular operation 
Word Origin:
late Middle English (as a verb in the sense ‘check or verify accounts’, especially by referring to a duplicate register): from Anglo-Norman French contreroller ‘keep a copy of a roll of accounts’, from medieval Latin contrarotulare, from contrarotulus ‘copy of a roll’, from contra- ‘against’ + rotulus ‘a roll’. The noun is perhaps via French contrôle.  
Thesaurus:
control noun
1. U
• The city is under enemy control.
power • • rule • • authority • • command • • hold • • grasp • • discipline • |formal jurisdiction •
in control/power/authority/command
be under sb's control/rule/authority/command/jurisdiction
have/give sb control/power/authority/command/a hold/jurisdiction over sb/sth
2. U, C
• government controls on trade and industry
limit • • limitation • • restriction • • constraint • • restraint • • check • • ceiling • • curb •
controls/limits/limitations/restrictions/constraints/restraints/checks/a ceiling/curbs on sth
without controls/limits/limitations/restrictions/constraints/restraints/checks
impose controls/limits/limitations/restrictions/constraints/restraints/checks/a ceiling/curbs
3. C, usually pl.
• the controls of an aircraft
button • • switch • • dial • • wheel • • lever • • knob •
be at/take the controls/wheel
adjust the controls/dial
the controls/wheel operates sth 
Synonyms:
limit
restriction • control • constraint • restraint • limitation
These are all words for sth that limits what you can do or what can happen.
limit • the greatest or smallest amount of sth that is allowed: ▪ The EU has set strict limits on pollution levels. ◊ ▪ the speed limit
restriction • (rather formal) a rule or law that limits what you can do: ▪ There are no restrictions on the amount of money you can withdraw.
control • (often in compounds) the act of limiting or managing sth; a method of doing this: ▪ arms control
constraint • (rather formal) a fact or decision that limits what you can do: ▪ We have to work within severe constraints of time and money.
restraint • (rather formal) a decision, a rule, an idea, etc. that limits what you can do; the act of limiting sth because it is necessary or sensible to do so: ▪ The government has imposed export restraints on some products. ◊ ▪ The unions are unlikely to accept any sort of wage restraint.
limitation • the act or process of limiting sth; a rule, fact or condition that limits sth: ▪ They would resist any limitation of their powers.
restriction, constraint, restraint or limitation?
These are all things that limit what you can do. A restriction is rule or law that is made by sb in authority. A constraint is sth that exists rather than sth that is made, although it may exist as a result of sb's decision. A restraint is also sth that exists: it can exist outside yourself, as the result of sb else's decision; but it can also exist inside you, as a fear of what other people may think or as your own feeling about what is acceptable: ▪ moral/social/cultural restraints. A limitation is more general and can be a rule that sb makes or a fact or condition that exists.
limits/restrictions/controls/constraints/restraints/limitations on sth
limits/limitations to sth
severe limits/restrictions/controls/constraints/restraints/limitations
tight limits/restrictions/controls/constraints
to impose/remove limits/restrictions/controls/constraints/restraints/limitations
to lift restrictions/controls/constraints/restraints 
Example Bank:
• Chief Air Officer Sedley was at the controls of the Boeing 707.
• Editors do not exercise control over large sections of their newspapers.
• Enemy forces have now regained control of the area.
• Everything is under control
• He defended the tradition of civilian control over the military.
• He lost control of the car when he swerved to avoid a bicycle.
• He wants to hand over control of social security to the private sector.
• He's a real control freak.
• I had this feeling that things were out of control.
• Many teenagers have poor impulse control.
• New crime control measures have failed.
• Once we were in the air, I was allowed to take the controls.
• Parking is outside my control.
• The car went out of control on the icy road.
• The country has tightened its border controls.
• The department was under the control of Bryce Thompson.
• The elected government is back in control.
• The event has been cancelled due to circumstances beyond our control.
• The government has imposed strict controls on new building.
• The idea is to give councils full control of their own budgets.
• The police are experts in crowd control.
• They have introduced controls on public spending.
• They have little control over that side of the business.
• They soon got the situation under control.
• Weeds should be kept under strict control.
• a programmable control unit
• attempts to wrest control of the town from government forces
• calls for tougher export controls
• government plans to centralize control of schools
• plans to relax price controls
• the air traffic control tower
• the water pressure control valve
• A pest control officer was called in to deal with the rat problem.
• He got so angry he lost control.
• Practical measures such as quality control and testing are very important in the manufacturing process.
• The aim is to give people more control over their own lives.
• The city is under enemy control.
• The coach made the team work hard on ball control.
• The family has sold most of its shares and will lose control of the company.
• a reliable method of birth control

Idioms: get something under control ▪ in control ▪ out of control ▪ under control