as in tying
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 tethering
Either option requires a hospital stay of around two to three days, and the recovery afterward can be shorter for tethering.
—
Kate Snow, NBC news, 4 Dec. 2025
It was designed to give employers leverage over foreign workers by tethering their immigration status to their job.
—Billal Rahman, MSNBC Newsweek, 27 Oct. 2025
Those questions from reporters may soon be the last thing left tethering the President to at least some form of reality.
—Susan B. Glasser, New Yorker, 16 Oct. 2025
Just a few kilometers away, a black bear sniffs and studies the device tethering it to a tree.
—Ganesh Marín, The Dial, 7 Oct. 2025
Thanks to the tethering process, his memories of the last year have been wiped, leaving only a man known as Red, a ruthless shadow and former contract killer for a cruel, mercurial billionaire.
—Maureen Lee Lenker, Entertainment Weekly, 19 Sep. 2025
Rather than tethering them to screens, students prototyped with cardboard, paper, and recycled materials.
—Dan Fitzpatrick, Forbes.com, 9 Sep. 2025
Pet owners in Milwaukee might need to start microchipping their animals and follow tight regulations on tethering — that is, if two major animal organizations can find common ground.
—Sophia Tiedge, jsonline.com, 8 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for tethering
Verb
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Even if the Rams had scored with, say, 90 seconds to go instead of 38 seconds, because a blitz misfired, at least Carolina would have had time to try for a tying field goal and send the game into OT.—
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And an offsides penalty by defensive end Braden Fiske on third-and-five gave the Panthers a fresh set of downs on a drive that ended in a game-tying field goal.—
Verb
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Maybe the implications of binding yourself in chains?—
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That’s key given the agreement would be legally binding and set rules, fees, timelines and more for both parties.—
Verb
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Despite his mediator role, Rodríguez is also known for his explosive temperament, lashing out in Congress and publicly threatening and insulting members of the opposition.—
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Trump spent most of 2025 downplaying the significance of the files, at times lashing out against Republicans who demanded the release of information about other potential perpetrators.—
Cite this Entry
“Tethering.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/tethering. Accessed 13 Jan. 2026.
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