hidebound

[hahyd-bound]

adjective

1. narrow and rigid in opinion; inflexible.

   a hidebound pedant.

2. oriented toward or confined to the past; extremely conservative.

   a hidebound philosopher.

3. (of a horse, cow, etc.) having the back and ribs bound tightly by the hide.

hidebound

/ ˈhaɪdˌbaʊnd /

adjective

1. restricted by petty rules, a conservative attitude, etc

2. (of cattle, etc) having the skin closely attached to the flesh as a result of poor feeding

3. (of trees) having a very tight bark that impairs growth

Other Word Forms

• hideboundness noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of hidebound¹

First recorded in 1550–60; hide ² + -bound ¹

Example Sentences

The agency was just like the Saginaw he’d run from, Dudek said: an insular, hidebound place where everyone knew everyone and they all thought innovation would cost them their jobs.

Read more on Salon

But a huge part of it is just this default institutionalism, this hidebound risk aversion that I think has become a real cultural problem in the Democratic Party.

Read more on Salon

There was a time when Olympians weren’t allowed to receive any money, when the International Olympic Committee clung to a hidebound notion of amateurism.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Egyptian-backed young officers in Yemen’s capital, Sanaa, staged a coup in 1962 against a hidebound theocratic leader who had long kept the country in a state of isolation.

Read more on Salon

The production, which was at the Park Avenue Armory earlier this season, has arrived at the St. James Theatre in the role of deus ex machina, rescuing Broadway from its hidebound habits.

Read more on Los Angeles Times