bound

B2 · Upper Intermediate

adj. travelling toward a specific place.

adj. heading towards a specific destination; frequently used in compound forms like 'northbound'.

“The train bound for London was delayed by twenty minutes.”

“All outward-bound flights were grounded due to the volcanic ash cloud spreading across the continent.”

B2 · Upper Intermediate

adj. forced to do something by law, duty, or a promise.

adj. legally or morally obliged to perform an action.

“The doctor is bound by law to keep your medical records private.”

“Under the terms of the non-disclosure agreement, the former employee was bound to remain silent about the company's internal research.”

C1 · Advanced Technical

adj. unable to move or act because of a specific situation, like weather or illness.

adj. confined or restricted to a place or state, typically used in compounds.

“The small village was snow-bound for three days after the storm.”

“The patient remained house-bound for several months while recovering from the complex surgical procedure.”

B2 · Upper Intermediate

v. to move quickly with large jumps.

v. to move by leaps or jumps; to progress with a series of springing movements.

“The dog started to bound across the field when it saw the ball.”

“The deer bounded effortlessly over the fence and disappeared into the thick forest.”

C1 · Advanced Formal

v. to be the edge or limit of a place.

v. to serve as a boundary for a territory or geographical area.

“The property is bounded on the north side by a small river.”

“The ancient kingdom was bounded by the high mountains to the east and the vast desert to the west.”

B2 · Upper Intermediate Countable noun

n. a limit or boundary of what is possible or allowed.

n. a territorial or conceptual boundary; a limit of what is acceptable.

“His rude behavior was beyond the bounds of what is acceptable at work.”

“The new scientific discovery pushed the bounds of human knowledge further than ever before.”

C1 · Advanced Countable noun Literary

n. a big, energetic jump forward.

n. a large or springing leap.

“With one great bound, the cat reached the top of the wall.”

“The athlete cleared the stream in a single bound, demonstrating remarkable physical strength.”

C2 · Proficiency Countable noun Mathematics Technical

n. a number that is greater or smaller than every number in a group.

n. a value that is known to be greater than (upper bound) or less than (lower bound) every element in a set.

“We need to find the upper bound for this set of data.”

“The algorithm calculates the lower bound of the function to determine the minimum resources required for the task.”