tie-up

1 of 2

noun

1
: a slowdown or stoppage of traffic, business, or operation (as by a mechanical breakdown)
2
: connection, association
helpful financial tie-ups
3
a
: a cow stable
also : a space for a single cow in a stable
b
: a mooring place for a boat

tie up

2 of 2

verb

tied up; tying up or tieing up; ties up

transitive verb

1
: to attach, fasten, or bind securely
also : to wrap up and fasten
2
a
: to connect closely : join
tie up the loose ends
b
: to cause to be linked so as to depend on or relate to something
3
a
: to place or invest in such a manner as to make unavailable for other purposes
their money was tied up in stocks
b
: to restrain from normal movement, operation, or progress
traffic was tied up for miles
4
a
: to keep busy
was tied up in conference all day
b
: to preempt the use of
tied up the phone for an hour

intransitive verb

1
: dock entry 2
the ferry ties up at the south slip
2
: to assume a definite relationship
this ties up with what I told you before

Examples of tie-up in a Sentence

Noun a tie-up at the junction of Main and Central has slowed traffic to a crawl in a tie-up with the film studio, the toy company is producing a whole line of figures featuring characters from the animated movie Verb an accident is tying up traffic at 5th and Broadway
Recent Examples on the Web
These examples are automatically compiled from online sources to illustrate current usage. Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Noun
In March, JetBlue called off its tie-up with Spirit after a judge blocked the union on antitrust grounds the year before. Melvin Backman, Quartz, 29 Oct. 2024 The best perk of the tie-up for top Hyatt elite and top American loyalty members was reciprocal earning, which meant frequent flyers earn Hyatt points and American miles when staying at Hyatt hotels and Hyatt elite status members earn hotel points and airline miles when flying American. Ramsey Qubein, Forbes, 27 Oct. 2024
Verb
His wife, who called 911, had been tied up with her hands duct-taped. Jon Haworth, ABC News, 18 Oct. 2024 His new repayment plan, known as SAVE, is tied up in federal court. Kelly Meyerhofer, Journal Sentinel, 18 Oct. 2024 See all Example Sentences for tie-up 

Word History

First Known Use

Noun

1851, in the meaning defined at sense 3a

Verb

1530, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of tie-up was in 1530

Dictionary Entries Near tie-up

Cite this Entry

“Tie-up.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tie-up. Accessed 5 Nov. 2024.

Kids Definition

tie-up

1 of 2 noun
ˈtī-ˌəp
1
: a slowing or stopping especially of traffic or business
2

tie up

2 of 2 verb
(ˈ)tī-ˈəp
1
: to fasten securely
2
a
: to use in such a manner as not to be available for other purposes
money tied up in stocks
b
: to keep from working or going
traffic was tied up for hours
3
: to have a relationship with something else
this ties up with what you said before
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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