*SET-U

English word origin

Etymology of bound

From Middle English bound, bund (preterite) and bounden, bunden, ibunden, ȝebunden (past participle), from Old English bund- and bunden, ġebunden respectively. See bind.

5 source sectionsExtended source reportWiktionary original ↗
In this entry · 5 source sections

The source etymologies

Wiktionary via Kaikki / Wiktextract

The source reports below are imported and unreviewed by *SET-U. Separate numbered origins and differing source variants are preserved; agreement within this extraction is not independent corroboration.

Source etymology 1

Original entry ↗
adj

Obliged (to). · That cannot stand alone as a free word. · Constrained by a quantifier. · Constipated; costive.

verb

simple past and past participle of bind

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

From Middle English bound, bund (preterite) and bounden, bunden, ibunden, ȝebunden (past participle), from Old English bund- and bunden, ġebunden respectively. See bind.

Relationships mentioned by the source

These are extracted mentions, not a timeline or a verified sequence of immediate parents.

  • Inherited-form mentionboundenm

This page abbreviates 2 auxiliary source items. The etymology narrative is not shortened. Omission counts are available in the audit fields below; consult the original for complete auxiliary material.

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

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Source etymology 2

Original entry ↗
adj

Ready, prepared. · Ready to start or go (to); moving in the direction (of). · Very likely (to), certain to

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *bʰuH- Proto-Germanic *būaną Old Norse búinnbor. Middle English bownde English bound From Middle English bownde, alternation (with -d partly for euphonic effect and partly by association with Etymology 1 above) of Middle English boun, from Old Norse búinn, past participle of búa (“to prepare”).

Relationships mentioned by the source

These are extracted mentions, not a timeline or a verified sequence of immediate parents.

  • Root classification mention*bʰuH-ine-pro
  • Inherited-form mentionbowndeenm
  • Cognate mentionbounenm
  • Derivation mentionbúinnnon
Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

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Source etymology 3

Original entry ↗
noun

A boundary, the border which one must cross in order to enter or leave a territory. · A value which is known to be greater or smaller than a given set of values.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

From Middle English bounde, from Old French bunne, from Medieval Latin bodina, earlier butina (“a bound, limit”).

Relationships mentioned by the source

These are extracted mentions, not a timeline or a verified sequence of immediate parents.

  • Inherited-form mentionboundeenm
  • Derivation mentionbunnefro
Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

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Source etymology 4

Original entry ↗
verb

To surround a territory or other geographical entity; to form the boundary of. · To be the bound of.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

From Middle English bounden, from the noun (see above).

Relationships mentioned by the source

These are extracted mentions, not a timeline or a verified sequence of immediate parents.

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

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Source etymology 5

Original entry ↗
verb

To leap, move by jumping. · To cause to leap. · To rebound; to bounce. · To cause to rebound; to throw so that it will rebound; to bounce.

noun

A sizeable jump, great leap. · A spring from one foot to the other in dancing. · A bounce; a rebound.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

From Middle English *bounden (attested as bounten), from French bondir (“leap", "bound", originally "make a loud resounding noise”); perhaps from Late Latin bombitāre (“hum, buzz”), frequentative verb, from Latin bombus (“a humming or buzzing”).

Relationships mentioned by the source

These are extracted mentions, not a timeline or a verified sequence of immediate parents.

  • Inherited-form mention*boundenenm
  • Derivation mentionbondirfr · leap", "bound", originally "make a loud resounding noise
  • Derivation mentionbombusla · a humming or buzzing
Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

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Where this record stops

This page does not supply an independently verified sound-change sequence, first-use manuscript or complete family tree unless a cited analysis explicitly establishes one. Missing detail here is a limit of this record—not a claim that humanity knows nothing more.

An older meaning does not determine what a word must mean today. Follow the sources, preserve disagreements, and keep ancestry separate from interpretation.

Contribute located evidence for bound →

Source and snapshot

Imported from Wiktionary contributors; extracted by Tatu Ylonen / Wiktextract / Kaikki.org. Selected fields are reformatted and grouped; wording, source identity and etymology sections are retained. CC-BY-SA-4.0 applies to the imported source material.

Dump: 2026-10-01 · Extracted: 2026-10-30. These are snapshot dates, not the word’s first attestation or the page’s revision date.

Source entry and bibliography ↗Wiktionary revision history ↗Acquisition and rights ledger
Machine-source provenance
Source SHA-256
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Import run
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Permanent entry ID
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