to wind up
14
4.4
- phrasal verb
- /waɪnd ʌp/
:
dar cuerda a
- Then you can wind up the detector.
- wind up a toy
- wind up tight
Examples
-
You want me to wind up a music box?
-
People wind up their farm work, refurbish their homes, and prepare for the arrival of guests.
Academic text (2008) -
Like a clock that you can't wind up anymore.
-
And when we pull this string, we're winding up this mainspring just like a clock.
-
Virus particles wind up in a whitefly's saliva if it feeds on an infected plant.
Academic text (1997) -
Can you help me wind up this old-fashioned toy before it runs out of energy?
-
To make the clock work, you need to wind up the knob several times.
-
When she winds up the music box, it plays a beautiful tune.
Synonyms
61
7.1
To turn a part of a clock or watch to make it work
2
4.4
To start a machine by turning a handle
1
3.7
Turn a handle by hand to make a machine start or work
To twist something into a tight coil
How Tight
Surface Forms
Morphology
The sense 'to bring to an end' is partially derivable because the particle 'up' commonly marks completion and many verb + up combinations mean 'finish', so a learner familiar with that pattern may infer the meaning. However, 'wind' does not literally mean 'finish' and the specific phrasal-verb reading is a metaphorical extension that is not fully predictable from the constituents alone, so prior exposure or knowledge of the construction is usually needed.
Etymology
Wind up comes from the simple action of turning a key or knob to tighten a spring inside a watch or toy, making it go. That's why wind up means 'to make a mechanical device work by coiling its spring'.