bottle up
phrasal verb
bottled up; bottling up; bottles up
: to keep (a feeling or emotion) inside instead of expressing it : to hide (a feeling or emotion)
She's kept her feelings about the accident bottled up for too long.
I know he's angry, but he bottles it up inside instead of talking to someone about it.
Examples of bottle up in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
On Thursday, that was all bottled up into one sequence.
—
Nick Harris, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 25 Dec. 2025
Yes, the Commanders’ defense bottled up Saquon Barkley most of the game, but most of the game isn’t all of the game.
—David Aldridge, New York Times, 21 Dec. 2025
This small business bottled up pepper jelly and other sauces, sharing them first with friends and family and then with the broader South through gift stores and direct mail.
—Kimberly Holland, Southern Living, 19 Dec. 2025
Isiah Pacheco, Kareem Hunt and Brashard Smith were bottled up.
—Blair Kerkhoff, Kansas City Star, 14 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for bottle up
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Nick Harris, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 25 Dec. 2025
Yes, the Commanders’ defense bottled up Saquon Barkley most of the game, but most of the game isn’t all of the game.
—David Aldridge, New York Times, 21 Dec. 2025
This small business bottled up pepper jelly and other sauces, sharing them first with friends and family and then with the broader South through gift stores and direct mail.
—Kimberly Holland, Southern Living, 19 Dec. 2025
Isiah Pacheco, Kareem Hunt and Brashard Smith were bottled up.
—Blair Kerkhoff, Kansas City Star, 14 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for bottle up
Cite this Entry
“Bottle up.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/bottle%20up. Accessed 8 Jan. 2026.
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