teth·er

[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)
3.
to fasten or confine with or as if with a tether.
4.
at the end of one's tether, at the end of one's resources, patience, or strength.

Origin:
1350–1400; Middle English (noun); compare Old Norse tjōthr, Dutch tuier

un·teth·ered, adjective
un·teth·er·ing, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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World English Dictionary
tether (ˈtɛðə) [Click for IPA pronunciation guide]
 
n
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.  at the end of one's tether distressed or exasperated to the limit of one's endurance
 
vb
4.  (tr) to tie or limit with or as if with a tether
 
[C14: from Old Norse tjothr; related to Middle Dutch tūder tether, Old High German zeotar pole of a wagon]

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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00:10
Tether is a GRE word you need to know.
So is mitigate. Does it mean:
derived from or guided by experience or experiment.
to lessen in force or intensity, as wrath, grief, harshness, or pain; moderate.
Etymonline
Word Origin & History

tether
late 14c., "rope for fastening an animal," probably from O.N. tjoðr "tether," from P.Gmc. *teudran (cf. Dan. tøir, Swed. tjuder, O.Fris. tiader, M.Du. tuder, Du. tuier "line, rope," O.H.G. zeotar "pole of a cart"), from PIE base *deu- "to fasten" + instrumentive suffix *-tro-. Figurative sense
of "measure of one's limitations" is attested from 1570s. The verb is first recorded late 15c., from the noun.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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American Heritage
Idioms & Phrases

tether

see end of one's rope (tether).

The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
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Example sentences
He's attached to the craft by both umbilical and tether lines.
Knowing how far the tether of your expertise extends is part of being a
  responsible scientist.
At the end of your tether or not, such comments are wrong.
Ranged about the stage alone or in small groups, they seem to tether that open
  space as if it were the billowing folds of a tent.
Idioms & Phrases
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