to have one's tubes tied

1 8.7

Have an operation that closes the tubes to the womb so she cannot get pregnant

idiom

Informal

: hacerse la ligadura de trompas

Don't have your tubes tied without consulting a doctor!

Examples

She has her tubes tied.
Many women choose having their tubes tied as a permanent birth control option.
After her third child, she considered having her tubes tied for peace of mind.
He's joked about having his tubes tied, though technically only women have the procedure.
After having her tubes tied, she felt a sense of relief knowing she would not get pregnant again.
Many women choose to have their tubes tied in order to prevent future pregnancies.
She decided to have her tubes tied because she felt her family was complete.

Synonyms

to sterilize

vsto have one's tubes tied

Specialized

15 5.8

To make a person or animal unable to have children by a medical operation

refers specifically to surgically closing female reproductive tubes to prevent pregnancy

to ligate

vsto have one's tubes tied

Specialized

3 8.4

To tie a blood vessel to stop bleeding

describes a sterilizing operation that closes female reproductive tubes surgically

to have her tubes tied

vsto have one's tubes tied

Informal

1 7.2

A woman who has surgery to permanently stop having children by closing her fallopian tubes

is a general phrase using a possessive to name the same procedure

sterilized

vsto have one's tubes tied

Specialized

5.5

Made unable to have babies or young by an operation

names the specific surgical closing of female reproductive tubes

Antonyms

to conceive

103 6.0

To become pregnant

to procreate

27 6.5

To have babies or young

Surface Forms

have one's tubes tied infinitive

had one's tubes tied past

had one's tubes tied past participle

having one's tubes tied present participle

has one's tubes tied third person singular

Morphology

have + one + tubes + tied

The phrase literally describes someone's 'tubes' being 'tied', so a learner who knows the words can infer a bodily/medical procedure involving fastening tubes. However, understanding that this specifically means female sterilization (tying the fallopian tubes to prevent pregnancy) requires background anatomical and cultural knowledge, so the relation is only partially predictable.

Etymology

Have one's tubes tied comes from a simple medical picture: doctors tie the small tubes that carry eggs so sperm cannot reach them. That's why it means 'can't get pregnant' or 'permanent birth control'.