bind
to fasten or secure with a band or bond.
to encircle with a band or ligature: She bound her hair with a ribbon.
to swathe or bandage (often followed by up): to bind up one's wounds.
to fasten around; fix in place by girding: They bound his hands behind him.
to tie up (anything, as sheaves of grain).
to cause to cohere: Ice bound the soil.
to unite by any legal or moral tie: to be bound by a contract.
to hold to a particular state, place, employment, etc.: Business kept him bound to the city.
to place under obligation or compulsion (usually used passively): We are bound by good sense to obey the country's laws.
Law. to put under legal obligation, as to keep the peace or appear as a witness (often followed by over): This action binds them to keep the peace. He was bound over to the grand jury.
to make compulsory or obligatory: to bind the order with a deposit.
to fasten or secure within a cover, as a book: They will bind the new book in leather.
to cover the edge of, as for protection or ornament: to bind a carpet.
(of clothing) to chafe or restrict (the wearer): This shirt binds me under the arms.
Medicine/Medical. to hinder or restrain (the bowels) from their natural function; constipate.
to indenture as an apprentice (often followed by out): In his youth his father bound him to a blacksmith.
to become compact or solid; cohere: The eggs and the flour bind, creating a stable cake.
to be obligatory: It is a duty that binds.
to chafe or restrict, as poorly fitting garments: This jacket binds through the shoulders.
to get stuck or cease to move freely: Overheating made the drill bit bind in the wood.
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.
Falconry. (of a hawk) to grapple or grasp prey firmly in flight (usually followed by to): The falcon binds to the pheasant and then carries it to the hunter.
the act or process of binding; the state or instance of being bound.
something that binds.
Informal. a difficult situation or predicament: This schedule has us in a bind.
Music. a tie, slur, or brace.
Falconry. the act of binding to prey in flight.
bind off, Knitting. to loop (one stitch) over another in making an edge on knitted fabric.
Origin of bind
1Other words for bind
Opposites for bind
Other words from bind
- bind·a·ble, adjective
- mis·bind, verb, mis·bound, mis·bind·ing.
- re·bind, verb, re·bound, re·bind·ing.
Words that may be confused with bind
- bind , bound
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use bind in a sentence
He proceeded to replace all the articles and to rebind the sled.
On the Yukon Trail | Roy J. SnellAnd there's the rub: rebind your book and—in nine cases out of ten—you will lower its market value.
The Book-Hunter at Home | P. B. M. AllanYour business then is to drive them away, to bind and rebind the sacrifice to God's altar.
Standards of Life and Service | T. H. HowardMany of them are rarely used; why rebind them at all, no matter how broken?
Notes on Bookbinding for Libraries | John Cotton DanaOthers because of narrow margins or quality of paper do not pay to rebind.
Mending and Repair of Books | Margaret Wright Brown
British Dictionary definitions for bind
/ (baɪnd) /
to make or become fast or secure with or as if with a tie or band
(tr often foll by up) to encircle or enclose with a band: to bind the hair
(tr) to place (someone) under obligation; oblige
(tr) to impose legal obligations or duties upon (a person or party to an agreement)
(tr) to make (a bargain, agreement, etc) irrevocable; seal
(tr) to restrain or confine with or as if with ties, as of responsibility or loyalty
(tr) to place under certain constraints; govern
(tr often foll by up) to bandage or swathe: to bind a wound
to cohere or stick or cause to cohere or stick: egg binds fat and flour
to make or become compact, stiff, or hard: frost binds the earth
(tr) to enclose and fasten (the pages of a book) between covers
(intr) (of a book) to undergo this process
(tr) to provide (a garment, hem, etc) with a border or edging, as for decoration or to prevent fraying
(tr; sometimes foll by out or over) to employ as an apprentice; indenture
(intr) slang to complain
(tr) logic to bring (a variable) into the scope of an appropriate quantifier: See also bound 1 (def. 9)
something that binds
the act of binding or state of being bound
informal a difficult or annoying situation
another word for bine
music another word for tie (def. 17)
mining clay between layers of coal
fencing a pushing movement with the blade made to force one's opponent's sword from one line into another
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
Origin of bind
1- See also bind over
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Scientific definitions for bind
[ bīnd ]
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.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Other Idioms and Phrases with bind
In addition to the idioms beginning with bind
- bind hand and foot
- bind over
also see:
- in a bind
Also see underbound.
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
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