as in ties
to attach (someone or something) to something else by or as if by means of a line or cord
I tethered the boat to the dock before coming ashore.
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Recent Examples of tethers
More adventurous than the Solterra, the Uncharted wears a thin line across the nose that tethers its LED running lights to its logo.
—
Marty Padgett, The Drive, 26 Feb. 2026
Secrets that could take down a company, an industry; that's a bond that tethers you for life.
—Melissa Fleur Afshar, MSNBC Newsweek, 11 Dec. 2025
The nature of my work tethers me to London.
—Rohan Banerjee, Time, 23 Aug. 2025
Marty Padgett, The Drive, 26 Feb. 2026
Secrets that could take down a company, an industry; that's a bond that tethers you for life.
—Melissa Fleur Afshar, MSNBC Newsweek, 11 Dec. 2025
The nature of my work tethers me to London.
—Rohan Banerjee, Time, 23 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for tethers
Verb
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The big story India rarely ties its foreign policy to a single partner or bloc.—
Priyanka Salve,
CNBC,
12 Mar. 2026
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The deal ties Pipkins to the Chargers for his eighth and ninth seasons in the NFL.—
Elliott Teaford,
Oc Register,
11 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Human rights groups warned at the time that the policy brought Kuwait closer to the kafala, or sponsorship system, that binds a migrant worker’s residency to their employer, which is still in use across the region.—
Kelsey Warner,
semafor.com,
12 Mar. 2026
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But Lucero said the Minnesota Human Rights Act binds all ride-share companies, including Uber.—
Steve Karnowski,
Twin Cities,
11 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Tethers.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/tethers. Accessed 19 Mar. 2026.
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