bind

American  

[bahynd] / baɪnd /

verb (used with object)

• binds,
  present (3rd person singular)
• bound,
  past participle,  past
• binding
  present participle

1. to fasten or secure with a band or bond.

   Synonyms:

   tie, fasten, attach

   Antonyms:

   untie, unfasten, unbind, loosen, loose

2. to encircle with a band or ligature.

   She bound her hair with a ribbon.

   Synonyms:

   wrap, belt, gird

3. to swathe or bandage (often followed byup ).

   to bind up one's wounds.

4. to fasten around; fix in place by girding.

   They bound his hands behind him.

5. to tie up (anything, as sheaves of grain).

6. to cause to cohere.

   Ice bound the soil.

7. to unite by any legal or moral tie.

   to be bound by a contract.

8. to hold to a particular state, place, employment, etc..

   Business kept him bound to the city.

9. to place under obligation or compulsion (usually used passively).

   We are bound by good sense to obey the country's laws.

   Synonyms:

   obligate, oblige, engage

10. 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.

11. to make compulsory or obligatory.

    to bind the order with a deposit.

12. to fasten or secure within a cover, as a book.

    They will bind the new book in leather.

13. to cover the edge of, as for protection or ornament.

    to bind a carpet.

14. (of clothing) to chafe or restrict (the wearer).

    This shirt binds me under the arms.

15. Medicine/Medical. to hinder or restrain (the bowels) from their natural function; constipate.

16. to indenture as an apprentice (often followed byout ).

    In his youth his father bound him to a blacksmith.

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verb (used without object)

• binds,
  present (3rd person singular)
• bound,
  past participle,  past
• binding
  present participle

1. to become compact or solid; cohere.

   The eggs and the flour bind, creating a stable cake.

2. to be obligatory.

   It is a duty that binds.

3. to chafe or restrict, as poorly fitting garments.

   This jacket binds through the shoulders.

4. to get stuck or cease to move freely.

   Overheating made the drill bit bind in the wood.

5. 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.

6. 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

• binds
  plural

1. the act or process of binding; the state or instance of being bound.

2. something that binds.

3. Informal. a difficult situation or predicament.

   This schedule has us in a bind.

4. Music. a tie, slur, or brace.

5. Falconry. the act of binding to prey in flight.

verb phrase

1. bind off to loop (one stitch) over another in making an edge on knitted fabric.

bind British  

/ baɪnd /

verb

1. to make or become fast or secure with or as if with a tie or band

2. to encircle or enclose with a band

   to bind the hair

3. (tr) to place (someone) under obligation; oblige

4. (tr) to impose legal obligations or duties upon (a person or party to an agreement)

5. (tr) to make (a bargain, agreement, etc) irrevocable; seal

6. (tr) to restrain or confine with or as if with ties, as of responsibility or loyalty

7. (tr) to place under certain constraints; govern

8. to bandage or swathe

   to bind a wound

9. to cohere or stick or cause to cohere or stick

   egg binds fat and flour

10. to make or become compact, stiff, or hard

    frost binds the earth

11. 1. (tr) to enclose and fasten (the pages of a book) between covers

    2. (intr) (of a book) to undergo this process

12. (tr) to provide (a garment, hem, etc) with a border or edging, as for decoration or to prevent fraying

13. (tr; sometimes foll by out or over) to employ as an apprentice; indenture

14. slang (intr) to complain

15. (tr) logic to bring (a variable) into the scope of an appropriate quantifier See also bound 1

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noun

1. something that binds

2. the act of binding or state of being bound

3. informal a difficult or annoying situation

4. another word for bine

5. music another word for tie

6. mining clay between layers of coal

7. fencing a pushing movement with the blade made to force one's opponent's sword from one line into another

8. 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

bind Scientific  

/ bīnd /

1. To combine with, form a bond with, or be taken up by a chemical or chemical structure. An enzyme, for example, is structured in such a way as to be able to bind with its substrate.

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bind Idioms  

More idioms and phrases containing bind

• bound
• in a bind

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• misbind
  verb
• rebind
  verb
• bindable
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• binds
  plural

Participles

• binding
  present
• bound
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• bind
  simple
• binds
  simple
• have bound
  perfect
• has bound
  perfect
• am binding
  progressive
• are binding
  progressive
• is binding
  progressive
• have been binding
  perfect progressive
• has been binding
  perfect progressive

Past

• bound
  simple
• had bound
  perfect
• was binding
  progressive
• were binding
  progressive
• had been binding
  perfect progressive

Future

• will bind
  simple
• will have bound
  perfect
• will be binding
  progressive
• will have been binding
  perfect progressive

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”

Explanation

If you're in a bind, you have been hindered by some situation. You'll find yourself in a bind if you agree to bring dessert to a party, only to realize that you're out of fruit, sugar, and chocolate chips. The verb bind means to tie, secure, or fasten as with string or rope. When you put a Christmas tree on the top of your car, you need to bind it with twine to make sure it stays there while you drive. The past tense of bind is "bound." To bind is also to create an emotional attachment. Your love for your family binds you to them.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

bind binds bound binding

But Mitchell says so much more by saying nothing overt about those things, and instead, depicting a family who wants nothing more than to get out of the bind they’ve found themselves in.

From Salon ● Aug. 20, 2026

If any sufficiently senior official could sign away tax liability with a memo, the revenue laws would bind only taxpayers without friends in the government.

From Slate ● Aug. 10, 2026

It destroys the ties that bind and encourages anger and petulance.

From Salon ● Jul. 31, 2026

Hernández Sánchez proposed that if lanthanides could bind oxygen in the right way, they might produce highly reactive lanthanide oxo compounds.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 29, 2026

Not so when we are upon fatigue: When we dig, bind, do any of the work of entrenchment—these things I know from long practice—I am one of the number.

From "The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Volume II: The Kingdom on the Waves" by M.T. Anderson

Nothing here binds a future administration, and courts almost never stop the government from disavowing promises its officials had no authority to make.

From Slate ● Aug. 10, 2026

The Ocean of Peace Alliance elevated Fiji to one of Australia's few treaty allies and binds each nation to come to the other's "mutual defence".

From Barron's ● Jul. 9, 2026

And, unlike the AD100-approved interior designers and architects that so many Hollywood stars rely on to bring their dream dwellings to life, the tie that binds these A-listers is actually accessible to the average homeowner.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 6, 2026

It also binds both sides to achieving a final deal in a "maximum" of 60 days, which could be extended with mutual consent.

From BBC ● Jun. 19, 2026

There's just this one thing that binds us.

From "How It Went Down" by Kekla Magoon

“This is bound to be repeated again,” Dunn said.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 24, 2026

"It's better to find your position within the technological wave. In the process of progress, structural changes are bound to occur, and these structural changes are exactly where students' future employment opportunities lie."

From BBC ● Aug. 24, 2026

South Korea's Vice Oceans Minister Nam Jae-hon said the Arctic route was "bound to become an alternative" to Middle Eastern shipping lanes -- as geopolitical risks and technological advances make it increasingly competitive.

From Barron's ● Aug. 22, 2026

Elsewhere on Oahu, students at the University of Hawaii make equipment bound for the moon.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 20, 2026

“We can’t let her go it alone, Jimmy. If Blythe’s is having a sale, Formann’s is bound to be having one too.”

From "The Red Car to Hollywood" by Jennie Liu

While there has been no official confirmation of the outcome, it understood Mateta's contract remained binding.

From BBC ● Aug. 22, 2026

Its velvet binding has metal corner guards bearing her crowned falcon with a lion rampant, dragon and greyhound, and Anne’s motifs recur in the illuminations.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 22, 2026

I had already picked up a white onion, although an onion is hardly a binding commitment; so many good dinners begin that way.

From Salon ● Aug. 20, 2026

“We believe that these conditions, if secured through a binding agreement, will largely serve this purpose,” the said.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 13, 2026

The spy soaked the book in water to dissolve the glue that held the binding together.

From "Spies: The Secret Showdown Between America and Russia" by Marc Favreau

Related Words

• attach
• connect
• cover
• dress
• handcuff
• restrict
• shackle
• stick
• strap
• tether
• tie up
• unite
• wrap