bundle

[buhn-dl]

noun

1. several objects or a quantity of material gathered or bound together.

   a bundle of hay.

2. an item, group, or quantity wrapped for carrying; package.

   Synonyms: packet, pac, parcel

3. a number of things considered together.

   a bundle of ideas.

4. Slang.,  a great deal of money.

   He made a bundle in the market.

5. Botany.,  an aggregation of strands of specialized conductive and mechanical tissues.

6. Also called bundle of isoglosses. Dialect Geography.,  a group of close isoglosses running in approximately the same direction, especially when taken as evidence of an important dialect division.

7. Anatomy, Zoology.,  an aggregation of fibers, as of nerves or muscles.

verb (used with object)

bundled, bundling 

1. to tie together or wrap in a bundle.

   Bundle the newspapers for the trash man.

2. to send away hurriedly or unceremoniously (usually followed by off, out, etc.).

   They bundled her off to the country.

3. to offer or supply (related products or services) in a single transaction at one all-inclusive price.

verb (used without object)

bundled, bundling 

1. to leave hurriedly or unceremoniously (usually followed by off, out, etc.).

   They indignantly bundled out of the meeting.

2. (especially of sweethearts during courtship in early New England) to lie in the same bed while fully clothed, as for privacy and warmth in a house where an entire family shared one room with a fireplace.

verb phrase

1. bundle up,  to dress warmly or snugly.

   A blizzard was raging but the children were all bundled up.

bundle

/ ˈbʌndəl /

noun

1. a number of things or a quantity of material gathered or loosely bound together

   a bundle of sticks

2. something wrapped or tied for carrying; package

3. slang,  a large sum of money

4. slang,  to be extremely fond of

5. biology a collection of strands of specialized tissue such as nerve fibres

6. botany short for vascular bundle

7. textiles a measure of yarn or cloth; 60 000 yards of linen yarn; 5 or 10 pounds of cotton hanks

8. 1. slang,  to panic or give up hope

   2. slang,  to give birth

verb

1. to make into a bundle

2. to go or cause to go, esp roughly or unceremoniously

   we bundled him out of the house

3. to push or throw, esp quickly and untidily

   to bundle shirts into a drawer

4. (tr) to sell (computer hardware and software) as one indivisible package

5. (tr) to give away (a relatively cheap product) when selling an expensive one to attract business

   several free CDs are often bundled with music centres

6. (intr) to sleep or lie in one's clothes on the same bed as one's betrothed: formerly a custom in New England, Wales, and elsewhere

Other Word Forms

• bundler noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of bundle¹

1350–1400; Middle English bundel < Middle Dutch bundel, bondel; akin to bind

Word History and Origins

Origin of bundle¹

C14: probably from Middle Dutch bundel ; related to Old English bindele bandage; see _bind , _bond

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. drop one's bundle, to lose confidence or hope.

More idioms and phrases containing bundle

• make a bundle

Synonym Study

Bundle, bunch refer to a number of things or an amount of something fastened or bound together. Bundle implies a close binding or grouping together, and often refers to a wrapped package: a bundle of laundry, of dry goods. A bunch is a number of things, usually all of the same kind, fastened together: a bunch of roses, of keys.

Example Sentences

One Friday afternoon in February, Francisco Álvarez León loaded his white pickup with a basket of honey, a bottle of beer, and a bundle of yellow flowers.

From Los Angeles Times

You inherit 23 of these bundles of DNA from each of your parents for a total of 46, which the egg already has.

From BBC

She recalled how her mother bundled her and her siblings into a bus that took them to the border, where they hired a “coyote,” or human smuggler, to get the rest of the way.

From Los Angeles Times

The “Love on the Brain” singer announced the arrival of her daughter with the “Highest 2 Lowest” star on Wednesday, sharing a photo of her newest bundle of joy to Instagram.

From Los Angeles Times

That’s because consumers who are giving up pay TV are finding a growing array of options outside the cable bundle providing national and local news.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• array 
• assortment 
• bag 
• bale 
• batch 
• box 
• bunch 
• carton 
• clump 
• cluster 
• crate 
• heap 
• package 
• packet 
• pallet 
• parcel 
• pile 
• quantity 
• stack 
• wad