tether

[teth-er]

noun

1. a rope, chain, or the like, by which an animal is fastened to a fixed object so as to limit its range of movement.

2. the utmost length to which one can go in action; the utmost extent or limit of ability or resources.

verb (used with object)

1. to fasten or confine with or as if with a tether.

2. Digital Technology.,  to use (an electronic device, usually a smartphone or tablet) to enable a wireless internet connection on another nearby device, often a laptop.

   There's no Wi-Fi, so I'll have to tether my phone to my laptop.

verb (used without object)

1. Digital Technology.,  to use an electronic device to enable a wireless internet connection on another device.

tether

/ ˈtɛðə /

noun

1. a restricting rope, chain, etc, by which an animal is tied to a particular spot

2. the range of one's endurance, etc

3. distressed or exasperated to the limit of one's endurance

verb

1. (tr) to tie or limit with or as if with a tether

Other Word Forms

• untethering adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of tether¹

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English (noun); compare Old Norse tjōthr, Dutch tuier

Word History and Origins

Origin of tether¹

C14: from Old Norse tjothr; related to Middle Dutch tūder tether, Old High German zeotar pole of a wagon

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. at the end of one's tether, at the end of one's resources, patience, or strength.

see end of one's rope (tether).

Example Sentences

Boats of varying colors and sizes float on the river, tethered to wooden docks.

Read more on Literature

It floated serenely at treetop height and was tethered with ropes to a circle of stakes that had been hammered firmly into the earth.

Read more on Literature

Alas, one of its legs was tethered by a long, thin cord to the epaulet of the actor pirate upon whose shoulder it had so recently perched.

Read more on Literature

Taking steroids, he added, had been a "stupid decision of my own", adding that he was "tired of being tethered to this solution".

Read more on BBC

If Hungary’s strongman prime minister, Viktor Orbán, remains firmly tethered to the Trumpist right and the cosplay intellectuals of the “national conservative” movement, he also looks to be sui generis in several ways.

Read more on Salon

Related Words

• cord 
• harness 
• leash 
• rope 
• shackle