The phrase "act of restraint" is correct and usable in written English.
It can be used to describe a deliberate decision to hold back or limit one's actions or impulses in a particular situation.
Example: "His act of restraint in the heated argument showed maturity and self-control."
Alternatives: "gesture of self-control" or "demonstration of moderation."
That it did not seek an even bigger increase is being touted by some as an act of restraint.
Another right-wing site lists "100 reasons to impeach Barack Obama," and even this is probably an act of restraint.
Mind you, no members of the sales staff had their collars popped, but it felt more like an act of restraint than a statement of style.
For while the peaceful mood was welcome, it belies a very deliberate act of restraint from the police - who tactically avoided walking into a trap.
There is a lovely shiver of ambiguity in that last phrase, suggesting both an act of reassurance and an act of restraint.
"And I never asked once what the new NATO headquarters cost," he said, as if he should be thanked for that act of restraint.
This is pretty chilly, but, as with the tract of ice, what might have seemed distant or cold comes off, rather, as an act of forbearance, restraint — art.
(It should be considered an act of extreme restraint, and charity, that the job didn't go to JD & the Straight Shot, the blues band fronted by James L. Dolan, chairman of Madison Square Garden).
(That I stifled a groan at this point should be honored as an act of heroic restraint.) In the meantime, the clowns are growing restless and rebel against their cruel master, who is destined to find himself "knock, knock, knockin' on heaven's door".
Although Williams has been knocked by some critics for his less-than-subtle movie scores, credit must be given for an act of relative restraint with regard to George Lucas' beloved movie universe.
"While this act of physical restraint did not diminish my passion and devotion to continue to represent the indigent, it was extremely disturbing that the court continued to sentence my client without an attorney after having violated his right to counsel".
