binder

American  

[bahyn-der] / ˈbaɪn dər /

noun

• binders
  plural

1. a person or thing that binds.

2. a detachable cover, resembling the cover of a notebook or book, with clasps or rings for holding loose papers together.

   a three-ring binder.

3. a person who binds books; a bookbinder.

4. Insurance. an agreement by which property or liability coverage is granted pending issuance of a policy.

5. Agriculture.

   1. an attachment to a harvester or reaper for binding the cut grain.

   2. Also called self-binder.  a machine that cuts and binds grain.

6. any substance that causes the components of a mixture to cohere.

   Eggs, dairy, and gelatin are common binders in traditional recipes that vegan bakers have to replace.

7. Painting. a component of paint in which pigment is suspended.

8. (in powder metallurgy) a substance for holding compacted metal powder together while it is being sintered.

9. Building Trades.

   1. a stone, as a perpend, for bonding masonry.

   2. a girder supporting the ends of two sets of floor joists.

   3. a substance for holding loose material together, as water or tar in a macadamized road, or polyurethane in polymer concrete.

   4. stirrup.

10. Also called chest binder.  a compression garment for temporarily flattening a person's breast tissue, often used by gender-diverse people as part of their gender expression.

    My new binder gets my chest pretty flat, and it's more comfortable than my old one.

11. British, Australian Slang. a large quantity, especially of food.

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binder British  

/ ˈbaɪndə /

noun

1. a firm cover or folder with rings or clasps for holding loose sheets of paper together

2. a material used to bind separate particles together, give an appropriate consistency, or facilitate adhesion to a surface

3. 1. a person who binds books; bookbinder

   2. a machine that is used to bind books

4. something used to fasten or tie, such as rope or twine

5. informal a square meal

6. Also called: reaper binder.  obsolete a machine for cutting grain and binding it into bundles or sheaves Compare combine harvester

7. an informal agreement giving insurance coverage pending formal issue of a policy

8. a tie, beam, or girder, used to support floor joists

9. a stone for binding masonry; bondstone

10. the nonvolatile component of the organic media in which pigments are dispersed in paint

11. (in systemic grammar) a word that introduces a bound clause; a subordinating conjunction or a relative pronoun Compare linker

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• binders
  plural

Etymology

Origin of binder

First recorded before 1000; Middle English, Old English; see bind, -er ¹

Explanation

A binder is a kind of notebook meant to hold loose papers together. You might have a binder for each of the classes you're taking. One type of binder has three metal rings that keep papers securely in place, and hard plastic covers to protect them from being bent or torn. You can also use the word binder when you're talking about a sticky or adhesive substance, or anything that binds two items together. The Old English root is bindere, "a person who binds," from bindan, "to tie up."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

binder binders

At least Elon Musk will never be able to get his grubby little ravioli paws on your sticker-adorned binder of crystal card pulls.

From Slate ● Aug. 31, 2026

The material combines tungsten carbide, which provides hardness, with cobalt, which acts as a metallic binder that holds the carbide particles together.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 4, 2026

Michele described carrying a binder with hundreds of pages of medical records and creating spreadsheets to track symptoms as they trekked from hospital to hospital, doctor to doctor, to get treatment for Aidan.

From MarketWatch ● Jun. 27, 2026

I am not asking you to become a full-time coupon strategist with a three-ring binder and a minor reality television aura.

From Salon ● May 22, 2026

There was one thick binder labeled “Vietnam: McNaughton Eyes Only.”

From "Most Dangerous: Daniel Ellsberg and the Secret History of the Vietnam War" by Steve Sheinkin

According to Garrett-Davis, Marston had around 185 binders full of photographs, often placed on a cut-out map of where they were taken and organized mile-by-mile, from below the U.S.-Mexico border all the way into Utah.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 10, 2026

Journalists and analysts who examined those binders found they were largely made up of documents that had already been made public.

From Salon ● Apr. 13, 2026

In the pre-AI world, after rough outlines were agreed on for an operation, commanders and specialists would develop mission plans, compiling paper-stuffed binders in a weekslong exercise.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 7, 2026

Because binders are present in such small amounts and lack clear visual signatures, scientists have had difficulty determining exactly where they are located within the electrode.

From Science Daily ● Feb. 20, 2026

In John McNaughton’s office at the Pentagon, there was a special bookcase where McNaughton kept his most sensitive cables and reports in three-ring binders.

From "Most Dangerous: Daniel Ellsberg and the Secret History of the Vietnam War" by Steve Sheinkin

Related Words

• folder
• notebook