bound
Other forms: bounds; bounded; bounding; boundingly
To bound is to jump or hop — usually as you run. Bound can also mean to go or to plan to go, especially to a certain destination, as in being bound for New York or homeward-bound.
Superman can "leap tall buildings in a single bound," but the word bound is usually about boundaries. When you're playing soccer or football, the ball goes "out of bounds." Someone can also be bound with rope — tied up. Commitments are another kind of tie. When you get married, you're bound to your partner. If you make a promise, you're bound to your word. On a less pleasant note, if you're constipated, you're bound up.
Definitions of bound
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confined by bonds“bound and gagged hostages”
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Synonyms:
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chained, enchained
bound with chains
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fettered, shackled
bound by chains fastened around the ankles
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furled, rolled
rolled up and secured
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pinioned
bound fast especially having the arms restrained
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tethered
confined or restricted with or as if with a rope or chain
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tied, trussed
bound or secured closely
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wired
tied or bound with wire
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unfree
hampered and not free; not able to act at will
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Antonyms:
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unbound
not restrained or tied down by bonds
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unchained, unfettered, unshackled, untied
not bound by shackles and chains
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untethered
not confined or restricted with a tether
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free
able to act at will; not hampered; not under compulsion or restraint
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chained, enchained
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secured with a cover or binding; often used as a combining form“bound volumes”“leather- bound volumes”
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Synonyms:
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brassbound
having trim or fittings of brass
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cased
enclosed in a case
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half-bound
(of books) having the back bound in one material and the sides in another
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paperback, paperbacked
(of books) having a flexible binding
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well-bound
(of books) having a sturdy and attractive binding
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Antonyms:
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unbound
not secured within a cover
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looseleaf
being or having leaves that can be easily removed or rearranged
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brassbound
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held with another element, substance or material in chemical or physical union
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Synonyms:
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conjugate, conjugated
of an organic compound; containing two or more double bonds each separated from the other by a single bond
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conjugate, conjugated
formed by the union of two compounds
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Antonyms:
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free
unconstrained or not chemically bound in a molecule or not fixed and capable of relatively unrestricted motion
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liberated
(of a gas e.g.) released from chemical combination
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unbound
not held in chemical or physical combination
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conjugate, conjugated
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covered or wrapped with a bandage
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bound by an oath“a bound official”
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Synonyms:
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sworn
bound by or stated on oath
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sworn
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bound by contract
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synonyms:
apprenticed, articled, indentured
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unfree
hampered and not free; not able to act at will
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unfree
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very likely; almost certain to happen
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Synonyms:
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likely
having a good chance of being the case or of coming about
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likely
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(usually followed by `to') governed by fate
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headed or intending to head in a certain direction; often used as a combining form as in `college-bound students'“children bound for school”
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synonyms:
destined
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orientated, oriented
adjusted or located in relation to surroundings or circumstances; sometimes used in combination
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orientated, oriented
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confined in the bowels“he is bound in the belly”
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Synonyms:
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constipated
have difficult or incomplete or infrequent evacuation of the bowels
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constipated
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the line or plane indicating the limit or extent of something
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examples:
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Rubicon
the boundary in ancient times between Italy and Gaul; Caesar's crossing it with his army in 49 BC was an act of war
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Mohorovicic discontinuity
the boundary between the Earth's crust and the underlying mantle
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types:
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hairline
the natural margin formed by hair on the head
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frontier
an international boundary or the area (often fortified) immediately inside the boundary
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heliopause
the boundary marking the edge of the sun's influence; the boundary (roughly 100 AU from the sun) between the interplanetary medium and the interstellar medium; where the solar wind from the sun and the radiation from other stars meet
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border, borderline, boundary line, delimitation, mete
a line that indicates a boundary
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bourn, bourne
an archaic term for a boundary
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district line
the boundary between two districts
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county line
the boundary between two counties
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city line
the boundary of a city
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border, edge
the boundary of a surface
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end
a boundary marking the extremities of something
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demarcation, demarcation line, limit
the boundary of a specific area
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lineation, outline
the line that appears to bound an object
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surface
the extended two-dimensional outer boundary of a three-dimensional object
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shoreline
a boundary line between land and water
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edge
the outside limit of an object or area or surface; a place farthest away from the center of something
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interface
(chemistry) a surface forming a common boundary between two things (two objects or liquids or chemical phases)
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hard palate
the bony part of the roof of the mouth
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palate, roof of the mouth
the upper surface of the mouth that separates the oral and nasal cavities
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face, side
a surface forming part of the outside of an object
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circuit, circumference
the boundary line encompassing an area or object
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fence line
a boundary line created by a fence
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property line
the boundary line between two pieces of property
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state boundary, state line
the boundary between two states
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brink
the edge of a steep place
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celestial sphere, empyrean, firmament, heavens, sphere, vault of heaven, welkin
the apparent surface of the imaginary sphere on which celestial bodies appear to be projected
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city limit, city limits
the limits of the area occupied by a city or town
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end
the surface at either extremity of a three-dimensional object
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inside, interior
the inner or enclosed surface of something
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limb
(astronomy) the circumferential edge of the apparent disc of the sun or the moon or a planet
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upper limit
the limit on the upper (or northernmost) side of something
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lower limit
the limit on the lower (or southernmost) side of something
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coastline
the outline of a coast
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silhouette
an outline of a solid object (as cast by its shadow)
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exterior, outside
the outer side or surface of something
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skyline
the outline of objects seen against the sky
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substrate, substratum
a surface on which an organism grows or is attached
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three-mile limit
the limit of a nation's territorial waters
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wave front, wavefront
(physics) an imaginary surface joining all points in space that are reached at the same instant by a wave propagating through a medium
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photosphere
the intensely luminous surface of a star (especially the sun)
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type of:
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extremity
the outermost or farthest region or point
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Rubicon
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a line determining the limits of an area
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types:
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rim
the shape of a raised edge of a more or less circular object
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border, margin, perimeter
the boundary line or the area immediately inside the boundary
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fringe, outer boundary, periphery
the outside boundary or surface of something
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brink, threshold, verge
a region marking a boundary
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upper bound
(mathematics) a number equal to or greater than any other number in a given set
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lower bound
(mathematics) a number equal to or less than any other number in a given set
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thalweg
the middle of the chief navigable channel of a waterway that forms the boundary line between states
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lip
either the outer margin or the inner margin of the aperture of a gastropod's shell
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type of:
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line
a length (straight or curved) without breadth or thickness; the trace of a moving point
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the greatest possible degree of something“what he did was beyond the bounds of acceptable behavior”
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types:
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knife-edge
a narrow boundary
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absoluteness, starkness, utterness
the quality of being complete or utter or extreme
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heat barrier, thermal barrier
a limit to high speed flight imposed by aerodynamic heating
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level best, maximum, utmost, uttermost
the greatest possible degree
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brink, cusp, verge
the limit beyond which something happens or changes
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precipice
the brink of a dangerous or potentially disastrous situation
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type of:
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extent
the distance or area or volume over which something extends
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form the boundary of; be contiguous to
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place limits on (extent or access)
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types:
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reduce, tighten
narrow or limit
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tie
limit or restrict to
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gate
restrict (school boys') movement to the dormitory or campus as a means of punishment
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draw a line, draw the line
reasonably object (to) or set a limit (on)
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mark off, mark out
set boundaries to and delimit
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harness, rein, rule
keep in check
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baffle, regulate
check the emission of (sound)
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cramp, halter, hamper, strangle
prevent the progress or free movement of
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constrain, stiffen, tighten, tighten up
restrict
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clamp down, crack down
repress or suppress (something regarded as undesirable)
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constrict, inhibit
limit the range or extent of
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constrain, cumber, encumber, restrain
hold back
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bridle
put a bridle on
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curb
keep to the curb
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clog
impede the motion of, as with a chain or a burden
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move forward by leaps and bounds“The horse bounded across the meadow”
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types:
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pronk
jump straight up
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bounce, rebound, recoil, resile, reverberate, ricochet, spring, take a hop
spring back; spring away from an impact
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burst
move suddenly, energetically, or violently
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bounce
leap suddenly
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capriole
perform a capriole, of horses in dressage
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galumph
move around heavily and clumsily
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ski jump
jump on skis
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saltate
leap or skip, often in dancing
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vault
bound vigorously
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leapfrog
jump across
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overleap, vault
jump across or leap over (an obstacle)
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curvet
perform a leap where both hind legs come off the ground, of a horse
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hop, hop-skip, skip
jump lightly
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caper
jump about playfully
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hop
make a jump forward or upward
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kick, kick back, recoil
spring back, as from a forceful thrust
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bound off, skip
bound off one point after another
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carom
rebound after hitting
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hurdle
jump a hurdle
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type of:
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move
move so as to change position, perform a nontranslational motion
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spring back; spring away from an impact
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a light, self-propelled movement upwards or forwards
Pronunciation
US
/baʊnd/
UK
/baʊnd/
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DISCLAIMER: These example sentences appear in various news sources and books to reflect the usage of the word ‘bound'.
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Word Family
Vocabulary lists containing bound
Freewater
Running away from the slave-owning Southerland Plantation, twelve-year-old Homer and his seven-year-old sister Ada head to the swamp, where they find some unexpected help.
Time for Andrew: A Ghost Story
Named after a long line of men in his family, twelve-year-old Andrew Joseph Tyler visits his ancestral home in Missouri and gets transported back in time.
Sheep
Called many names by different people, a border collie longs for a loving home where he can herd sheep.
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