tied up

tie up

1. To bind, fasten, or secure something with or as with string, cords, rope, etc. A noun or pronoun can be used between "tie" and "up." Make sure you tie up the boats at the dock so they don't get swept down the river. Will you tie these bundles of paper up for me, please? Action movie heroes are always able to escape even after they get tied up.2. To keep someone busy, occupied, or engaged. A noun or pronoun can be used between "tie" and "up." The meeting tied up the entire staff for most of the afternoon. I just have a couple of questions, so I won't tie you up for too long.3. To block, impede, or delay something. A noun or pronoun can be used between "tie" and "up." The construction has been tying up traffic on Main Street for nearly a year now. They've tied our application up in court, so we haven't made any real progress lately.4. To commit something to a particular use, thus making it unavailable for anything else. A noun or pronoun can be used between "tie" and "up." I wish I hadn't tied our savings up in that real estate scheme. We've tied up too many of our resources in this project already.5. In a competition or contest, to achieve a score equal to one's opponent. A noun or pronoun can be used between "tie" and "up." Their best bet is to try to tie the game up before halftime. One more correct answer and you'll be able to tie up the score.See also: tie, up

tied up

Fig. busy. How long will you be tied up? I will be tied up in a meeting for an hour.See also: tie, up

tied up

mod. busy. I was tied up and couldn’t get to the phone. See also: tie, up

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Synonyms for tied up

adj busy

Synonyms

Words related to tied up

adj kept occupied or engaged

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