fetter
noun
a chain or shackle placed on the feet.
had fettered
-
past perfectof fetter.past perfect
Used to express a completed action that took place before another specific past action occurred.
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.
Mullis instantly recognized he had solved a problem that had fettered genetic research for decades: the fact that DNA samples are often too meager to work with.
From Time Magazine Archive
I wished thereupon to start up from my couch, but a shuddering coldness had fettered every limb, and every attempted movement produced only a convulsive inward struggle.
From The Devil's Elixir Vol. II (of 2) by E. T. A. (Ernst Theodor Amadeus) Hoffmann
There was the man to whom the religion of the land and the law of the land, acting together in perfect harmony, had fettered her for life!
From Blind Love by Wilkie Collins
She was sorry that she had fettered herself with it....
From Lady Rose's Daughter by Mrs. Humphry Ward
It was an intrepid undertaking to attempt a repeal of taxes which for 143 years had fettered, as they were designed to do, knowledge from reaching the people.
From Bygones Worth Remembering, Vol. 2 (of 2) by George Jacob Holyoake
