bind
Americanverb (used with object)
-
to fasten or secure with a band or bond.
-
to encircle with a band or ligature.
She bound her hair with a ribbon.
-
to swathe or bandage (often followed byup ).
to bind up one's wounds.
-
to fasten around; fix in place by girding.
They bound his hands behind him.
-
to tie up (anything, as sheaves of grain).
-
to cause to cohere.
Ice bound the soil.
-
to unite by any legal or moral tie.
to be bound by a contract.
-
to hold to a particular state, place, employment, etc..
Business kept him bound to the city.
-
to place under obligation or compulsion (usually used passively).
We are bound by good sense to obey the country's laws.
-
Law. to put under legal obligation, as to keep the peace or appear as a witness (often followed byover ).
This action binds them to keep the peace. He was bound over to the grand jury.
-
to make compulsory or obligatory.
to bind the order with a deposit.
-
to fasten or secure within a cover, as a book.
They will bind the new book in leather.
-
to cover the edge of, as for protection or ornament.
to bind a carpet.
-
(of clothing) to chafe or restrict (the wearer).
This shirt binds me under the arms.
-
Medicine/Medical. to hinder or restrain (the bowels) from their natural function; constipate.
-
to indenture as an apprentice (often followed byout ).
In his youth his father bound him to a blacksmith.
verb (used without object)
-
to become compact or solid; cohere.
The eggs and the flour bind, creating a stable cake.
-
to be obligatory.
It is a duty that binds.
-
to chafe or restrict, as poorly fitting garments.
This jacket binds through the shoulders.
-
to get stuck or cease to move freely.
Overheating made the drill bit bind in the wood.
-
to temporarily flatten one's breast tissue using compression garments or strips of fabric, often done by gender-diverse people as part of their gender expression.
I feel pretty masculine today, so I think I'll bind.
-
Falconry. (of a hawk) to grapple or grasp prey firmly in flight (usually followed byto ).
The falcon binds to the pheasant and then carries it to the hunter.
noun
-
the act or process of binding; the state or instance of being bound.
-
something that binds.
-
Informal. a difficult situation or predicament.
This schedule has us in a bind.
-
Music. a tie, slur, or brace.
-
Falconry. the act of binding to prey in flight.
verb phrase
verb
-
to make or become fast or secure with or as if with a tie or band
-
to encircle or enclose with a band
to bind the hair
-
(tr) to place (someone) under obligation; oblige
-
(tr) to impose legal obligations or duties upon (a person or party to an agreement)
-
(tr) to make (a bargain, agreement, etc) irrevocable; seal
-
(tr) to restrain or confine with or as if with ties, as of responsibility or loyalty
-
(tr) to place under certain constraints; govern
-
to bandage or swathe
to bind a wound
-
to cohere or stick or cause to cohere or stick
egg binds fat and flour
-
to make or become compact, stiff, or hard
frost binds the earth
-
-
(tr) to enclose and fasten (the pages of a book) between covers
-
(intr) (of a book) to undergo this process
-
-
(tr) to provide (a garment, hem, etc) with a border or edging, as for decoration or to prevent fraying
-
(tr; sometimes foll by out or over) to employ as an apprentice; indenture
-
slang (intr) to complain
-
(tr) logic to bring (a variable) into the scope of an appropriate quantifier See also bound 1
noun
-
something that binds
-
the act of binding or state of being bound
-
informal a difficult or annoying situation
-
another word for bine
-
music another word for tie
-
mining clay between layers of coal
-
fencing a pushing movement with the blade made to force one's opponent's sword from one line into another
-
chess a position in which one player's pawns have a hold on the centre that makes it difficult for the opponent to advance there
Other Word Forms
- bindable adjective
- misbind verb
- rebind verb
Etymology
Origin of bind
First recorded before 1000; Middle English binden (verb), Old English bindan; cognate with Old High German bintan, Old Norse binda, Gothic bindan, Sanskrit bandhati “(he) binds”
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The Arbitration Panel for Stolen Goods from the Nazi Era will issue binding decisions and "better address the cases still open today", a government statement said.
From Barron's
He said he would only agree to the scheme at a crunch EU leaders' summit on December 18 if binding guarantees "are delivered and signed by member states at the time of decision".
From Barron's
An adduct is a bulky chemical attachment that forms when a compound, such as a carcinogen, binds directly to DNA.
From Science Daily
Analysts said the agreement, while not legally binding, would send a signal to companies and investors that Canada is open to development in the energy sector.
"And spermine is, so to speak, the binding agent that brings the strands together. There are only weakly attractive electrical forces between the molecules, and these organise them but do not firmly bind them together."
From Science Daily
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
