bind
verb · noun
Simple meaning
To tie or fasten tightly together, with a cord, band, ligature.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
byndIPA pronunciation (US)
ˈbaɪnd
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
verb
intransitive
To tie; to confine by any ligature.
transitive
To tie or fasten tightly together, with a cord, band, ligature, chain, etc.
figuratively
To oblige, restrain, or hold, by authority, law, duty, promise, vow, affection, or other social tie.
intransitive
To cohere or stick together in a mass.
intransitive
To be restrained from motion, or from customary or natural action, as by friction.
Stick to firmly
noun
countable
That which binds or ties.
countable
A troublesome situation; a problem; a predicament or quandary.
Any twining or climbing plant or stem, especially a hop vine; a bine.
The indurated clay of coal mines, or other overlying substances such as sandstone or shale.
Word at a Glance
- Difficulty
- B1 · Intermediate (estimated)
- Frequency
- Moderately Common
- Typical Use
- Neutral / general English
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: To tie; to confine by any ligature.
Used this way, bind is a reasonably familiar word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.
- Emotional tone
- Neutral
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Not strongly marked
- How common
- Moderately common
- Connotation
- No strong connotation
- Usage feel
- Neutral and straightforward
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
More ways to use bind
- “The Chinese would bind the feet of their women.”verb
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Common Patterns and Combinations
How this word naturally appears with others.
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Word Family
Related forms, grouped by how they connect.
Inflected forms
Grammatical variations of the same word.
The capacity to attract and hold something.
A machine that cuts grain and binds it in sheaves.
Compound terms
Established multiword terms.
A cardboard used by bookbinders to make covers for books.
Order a defendant to be placed in custody pending the outcome of a proceedings against him or her.
The energy required to separate particles from a molecule or atom or nucleus.
Finish the last row.
The protective covering on the front, back, and spine of a book.
An unresolvable dilemma.
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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.