tie-up

American  

[tahy-uhp] / ˈtaɪˌʌp /

noun

1. a temporary stoppage or slowing of business, traffic, telephone service, etc., as due to a strike, storm, or accident.

2. the act or state of tying up or the state of being tied up.

3. an involvement, connection, or entanglement.

   the tie-up between the two companies; his tie-up with the crime syndicate.

4. a mooring place; place where a boat may be tied up.

5. a cow barn with stalls.

6. a stall allotted to each cow in such a barn.

---

tie up British  

verb

1. (tr) to attach or bind securely with or as if with string, rope, etc

2. to moor (a vessel)

3. (tr; often passive) to engage the attentions of

   he's tied up at the moment and can't see you

4. (tr; often passive) to conclude (the organization of something)

   the plans for the trip were tied up well in advance

5. to come or bring to a complete standstill

6. (tr) to invest or commit (funds, etc) and so make unavailable for other uses

7. (tr) to subject (property) to conditions that prevent sale, alienation, or other action

---

noun

1. a link or connection

2. a standstill

3. an informal term for traffic jam

tie up Idioms  

1. Fasten securely; also, moor a ship. For example, Can you help me tie up these bundles? or The forecast was terrible, so we decided to tie up at the dock and wait out the storm . The first usage dates from the early 1500s, the nautical usage from the mid-1800s.

2. Impede the progress of, block, as in The accident tied up traffic for hours . [Late 1500s]

3. Keep occupied, engage, as in She was tied up in a meeting all morning . [Late 1800s]

4. Make funds or property inaccessible for other uses, as in Her cash is tied up in government bonds . [Early 1800s]

---

Etymology

Origin of tie-up

First recorded in 1705–15; noun use of verb phrase tie up

Example Sentences

SpaceX combined with Musk’s AI company, xAI, in February, to create a $1.25 trillion juggernaut in the biggest corporate tie-up by value in U.S. history.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 1, 2026

With 35 seconds left and the score tied at 61, Clemson struggled to get a shot off as Davidson forced a jump ball and then Gerda Raulusaityte forced a tie-up of her own.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 21, 2026

Against this backdrop, the sector is seeking to consolidate, although a bid by BHP to buy Anglo American, disrupting the latter's planned tie-up with Teck, recently collapsed.

From Barron's • Feb. 21, 2026

Wedbush analyst and Tesla bull Daniel Ives has said that a Tesla and SpaceX tie-up could occur within the next 18 months.

From MarketWatch • Feb. 18, 2026

“A night tie-up on open water? Can this be done speedily, in the manner of an attack? Could a man who wanted to make a boarding against another’s will even do so? Is it possible?”

From "Snow Falling on Cedars: A Novel" by David Guterson

Related Words

• closure
• gridlock
• interruption
• layoff
• shutdown