This invention provides single-stranded and multi-stranded compounds that are useful in various therapeutic modalities to regulate the expression of nucleic acid molecules in a cell. A range of compounds is provided, each containing one or more conformationally restricted nucleomonomers (CRN). In addition, compounds can contain one or more conformationally restricted nucleomonomers and one or more hydroxymethyl substituted nucleomonomers (unlocked nucleomonomers, UNA).