windup

[wahynd-uhp] /ˈwaɪndˌʌp/
noun
1.
the conclusion of any action, activity, etc.; the end or close.
2.
a final act or part.
3.
Baseball. the preparatory movements of the arm before pitching a ball.
Compare stretch (def 22).
4.
Informal. a mechanical object, as a toy or wristwatch, that is driven by a spring or similar mechanism that must be wound.
5.
an act or instance of winding up.
Also, wind-up.
Origin
1565-75; noun use of verb phrase wind up

wind2

[wahynd] /waɪnd/
verb (used without object), wound or (Rare) winded
[wahyn-did] /ˌwaɪn dɪd/ (Show IPA), winding.
1.
to change direction; bend; turn; take a frequently bending course; meander:
The river winds through the forest.
2.
to have a circular or spiral course or direction.
3.
to coil or twine about something:
The ivy winds around the house.
4.
to proceed circuitously or indirectly.
5.
to undergo winding or winding up.
6.
to be twisted or warped, as a board.
verb (used with object), wound or (Rare) winded
[wahyn-did] /ˌwaɪn dɪd/ (Show IPA), winding.
7.
to encircle or wreathe, as with something twined, wrapped, or placed about.
8.
to roll or coil (thread, string, etc.) into a ball, on a spool, or the like (often followed by up).
9.
to remove or take off by unwinding (usually followed by off or from):
She wound the thread off the bobbin.
10.
to twine, fold, wrap, or place about something.
11.
to make (a mechanism) operational by tightening the mainspring with a key (often followed by up):
to wind a clock; to wind up a toy.
12.
to haul or hoist by means of a winch, windlass, or the like (often followed by up).
13.
to make (one's or its way) in a bending or curving course:
The stream winds its way through the woods.
14.
to make (one's or its way) by indirect, stealthy, or devious procedure:
to wind one's way into another's confidence.
noun
15.
the act of winding.
16.
a single turn, twist, or bend of something wound:
If you give it another wind, you'll break the mainspring.
17.
a twist producing an uneven surface.
Verb phrases
18.
wind down,
  1. to lessen in intensity so as to bring or come to a gradual end:
    The war is winding down.
  2. to calm down; relax:
    He's too excited tonight to wind down and sleep.
19.
wind up,
  1. to bring to a state of great tension; excite (usually used in the past participle):
    He was all wound up before the game.
  2. to bring or come to an end; conclude:
    to wind up a sales campaign.
  3. to settle or arrange in order to conclude:
    to wind up one's affairs.
  4. to become ultimately:
    to wind up as a country schoolteacher.
  5. Baseball. (of a pitcher) to execute a windup.
Idioms
20.
out of wind, (of boards, plasterwork, etc.) flat and true.
Origin
before 900; Middle English winden, Old English windan; cognate with Dutch, German winden, Old Norse vinda, Gothic -windan; akin to wend, wander
Examples from the web for wind up
  • So the hefty fellows usually wind up playing character roles.
  • Now, however, some managers are likely to wind up in jail for paying themselves money that belonged to ordinary shareholders.
  • Bags that wind up at sea can absorb toxic chemicals, making them even more harmful to the wildlife around them.
  • They've all but claimed he's going to wind up with a pointy hood over his head.
  • But it might wind up getting sold again in the none-too-distant future.
  • Wildflowers scatter the valley floor and trails wind up to the ridgeline.
  • Every author gathers more information about a topic than can, or should, wind up between the covers.
  • One or both partners often wind up altering their career plans for the team.
  • Some of my colleagues allow students to address them by their first name, and consequently wind up in dangerous situations.
  • With a discussion, you may wind up with each student telling you their opinion on how you should handle the notes.
British Dictionary definitions for wind up

wind up

/waɪnd/
verb (adverb)
1.
to bring to or reach a conclusion: he wound up the proceedings
2.
(transitive) to tighten the spring of (a clockwork mechanism)
3.
(transitive; usually passive) (informal) to make nervous, tense, etc; excite: he was all wound up before the big fight
4.
(transitive) to roll (thread, etc) into a ball
5.
an informal word for liquidate (sense 2)
6.
(intransitive) (informal) to end up (in a specified state): you'll wind up without any teeth
7.
(transitive; usually passive) to involve; entangle: they were wound up in three different scandals
8.
(transitive) to hoist or haul up
9.
(transitive) (Brit, slang) to tease (someone)
noun
10.
the act of concluding
11.
the finish; end
12.
(Brit, slang) an act or instance of teasing: she just thinks it's a big wind-up

wind1

/wɪnd/
noun
1.
a current of air, sometimes of considerable force, moving generally horizontally from areas of high pressure to areas of low pressure See also Beaufort scale related adjective aeolian
2.
(mainly poetic) the direction from which a wind blows, usually a cardinal point of the compass
3.
air artificially moved, as by a fan, pump, etc
4.
any sweeping and destructive force
5.
a trend, tendency, or force: the winds of revolution
6.
(informal) a hint; suggestion: we got wind that you were coming
7.
something deemed insubstantial: his talk was all wind
8.
breath, as used in respiration or talk: you're just wasting wind
9.
(often used in sports) the power to breathe normally: his wind is weak See also second wind
10.
(music)
  1. a wind instrument or wind instruments considered collectively
  2. (often pl) the musicians who play wind instruments in an orchestra
  3. (modifier) of, relating to, or composed of wind instruments: a wind ensemble
11.
an informal name for flatus
12.
the air on which the scent of an animal is carried to hounds or on which the scent of a hunter is carried to his quarry
13.
between wind and water
  1. the part of a vessel's hull below the water line that is exposed by rolling or by wave action
  2. any point particularly susceptible to attack or injury
14.
break wind, to release intestinal gas through the anus
15.
(informal) get the wind up, have the wind up, to become frightened
16.
have in the wind, to be in the act of following (quarry) by scent
17.
how the wind blows, how the wind lies, which way the wind blows, which way the wind lies, what appears probable
18.
in the wind, about to happen
19.
(informal) three sheets in the wind, intoxicated; drunk
20.
in the teeth of the wind, in the eye of the wind, directly into the wind
21.
into the wind, against the wind or upwind
22.
(nautical) off the wind, away from the direction from which the wind is blowing
23.
(nautical) on the wind, as near as possible to the direction from which the wind is blowing
24.
(informal) put the wind up, to frighten or alarm
25.
(Brit, informal) raise the wind, to obtain the necessary funds
26.
sail close to the wind, sail near to the wind
  1. to come near the limits of danger or indecency
  2. to live frugally or manage one's affairs economically
27.
take the wind out of someone's sails, to destroy someone's advantage; disconcert or deflate
verb (transitive)
28.
to cause (someone) to be short of breath: the blow winded him
29.
  1. to detect the scent of
  2. to pursue (quarry) by following its scent
30.
to cause (a baby) to bring up wind after feeding by patting or rubbing on the back
31.
to expose to air, as in drying, ventilating, etc
Derived Forms
windless, adjective
windlessly, adverb
windlessness, noun
Word Origin
Old English wind; related to Old High German wint, Old Norse vindr, Gothic winds, Latin ventus

wind2

/waɪnd/
verb winds, winding, wound
1.
often foll by around, about, or upon. to turn or coil (string, cotton, etc) around some object or point or (of string, etc) to be turned etc, around some object or point: he wound a scarf around his head
2.
(transitive) to twine, cover, or wreathe by or as if by coiling, wrapping, etc; encircle: we wound the body in a shroud
3.
(transitive) often foll by up. to tighten the spring of (a clockwork mechanism)
4.
(transitive) foll by off. to remove by uncoiling or unwinding
5.
(usually intransitive) to move or cause to move in a sinuous, spiral, or circular course: the river winds through the hills
6.
(transitive) to introduce indirectly or deviously: he is winding his own opinions into the report
7.
(transitive) to cause to twist or revolve: he wound the handle
8.
(transitive; usually foll by up or down) to move by cranking: please wind up the window
9.
(transitive) to haul, lift, or hoist (a weight, etc) by means of a wind or windlass
10.
(intransitive) (of a board, etc) to be warped or twisted
11.
(intransitive) (archaic) to proceed deviously or indirectly
noun
12.
the act of winding or state of being wound
13.
a single turn, bend, etc: a wind in the river
14.
Also called winding. a twist in a board or plank
See also wind down, wind up
Derived Forms
windable, adjective
Word Origin
Old English windan; related to Old Norse vinda, Old High German wintan (German winden)

wind3

/waɪnd/
verb winds, winding, winded, wound
1.
(transitive) (poetic) to blow (a note or signal) on (a horn, bugle, etc)
Word Origin
C16: special use of wind1
Word Origin and History for wind up

wind

n.

"air in motion," Old English wind, from Proto-Germanic *wendas (cf. Old Saxon, Old Frisian, Middle Dutch, Dutch wind, Old Norse vindr, Old High German wind, German Wind, Gothic winds), from PIE *we-nt-o- "blowing," from root *we- "to blow" (cf. Sanskrit va-, Greek aemi-, Gothic waian, Old English wawan, Old High German wajan, German wehen, Old Church Slavonic vejati "to blow;" Sanskrit vatah, Avestan vata-, Hittite huwantis, Latin ventus, Old Church Slavonic vetru, Lithuanian vejas "wind;" Lithuanian vetra "tempest, storm;" Old Irish feth "air;" Welsh gwynt, Breton gwent "wind").

Normal pronunciation evolution made this word rhyme with kind and rind (Donne rhymes it with mind), but it shifted to a short vowel 18c., probably from influence of windy, where the short vowel is natural. A sad loss for poets, who now must rhyme it only with sinned and a handful of weak words. Symbolic of emptiness and vanity since late 13c.

I have forgot much, Cynara! gone with the wind. [Ernest Dowson, 1896]
Meaning "breath" is attested from late Old English; especially "breath in speaking" (early 14c.), so long-winded, also "easy or regular breathing" (early 14c.), hence second wind in the figurative sense (by 1830), an image from the sport of hunting.

Figurative phrase which way the wind blows for "the current state of affairs" is suggested from c.1400. To get wind of "receive information about" is by 1809, perhaps inspired by French avoir le vent de. To take the wind out of (one's) sails in the figurative sense (by 1883) is an image from sailing, where a ship without wind can make no progress. Wind-chill index is recorded from 1939. Wind energy from 1976. Wind vane from 1725.

"an act of winding round," 1825, from wind (v.1) . Earlier, "an apparatus for winding," late 14c., in which use perhaps from a North Sea Germanic word, e.g. Middle Dutch, Middle Low German winde "windlass."

v.

"move by turning and twisting," Old English windan "to turn, twist, wind" (class III strong verb; past tense wand, past participle wunden), from Proto-Germanic *wendanan (cf. Old Saxon windan, Old Norse vinda, Old Frisian winda, Dutch winden, Old High German wintan, German winden, Gothic windan "to wind"), from PIE *wendh- "to turn, wind, weave" (cf. Latin viere "twist, plait, weave," vincire "bind;" Lithuanian vyti "twist, wind").

Related to wend, which is its causative form, and to wander. Wind down "come to a conclusion" is recorded from 1952; wind up "come to a conclusion" is from 1825. Winding sheet "shroud of a corpse" is attested from early 15c.

"to perceive by scent, get wind of," early 15c., from wind (n.1). Of horns, etc., "make sound by blowing through," from 1580s. Meaning "tire, put out of breath; render temporarily breathless by a blow or punch" is from 1811, originally in pugilism. Related: Winded; winding.

wind up in Science
wind
(wĭnd)

A current of air, especially a natural one that moves along or parallel to the ground, moving from an area of high pressure to an area of low pressure. Surface wind is measured by anemometers or its effect on objects, such as trees. The large-scale pattern of winds on Earth is governed primarily by differences in the net solar radiation received at the Earth's surface, but it is also influenced by the Earth's rotation, by the distribution of continents and oceans, by ocean currents, and by topography. On a local scale, the differences in rate of heating and cooling of land versus bodies of water greatly affect wind formation. Prevailing global winds are classified into three major belts in the Northern Hemisphere and three corresponding belts in the Southern Hemisphere. The trade winds blow generally east to west toward a low-pressure zone at the equator throughout the region from 30° north to 30° south of the equator. The westerlies blow from west to east in the temperate mid-latitude regions (from 30° to 60° north and south of the equator), and the polar easterlies blow from east to west out of high-pressure areas in the polar regions. See also Beaufort scale, chinook, foehn, monsoon, Santa Ana.

Slang definitions & phrases for wind up

winder

Related Terms

sidewinder, stem-winding


Wimpy

noun

A hamburger sandwich

Related Terms

wimp

[fr J Wellington Wimpy, an obsessive lover and seeker of such sandwiches in the Popeye comic strip]


Idioms and Phrases with wind up

wind up

1.
Come or bring to a finish, as in The party was winding up, so we decided to leave, or Let's wind up the meeting and get back to work. [ Early 1800s ]
Also see: wind down
2.
Put in order, settle, as in She had to wind up her affairs before she could move. [ Late 1700s ]
3.
Arrive somewhere following a course of action, end up, as in We got lost and wound up in another town altogether, or If you're careless with your bank account, you can wind up overdrawn. [ ; early 1900s ]

wind

also see: