wind up

verb

wound up also winded up; winding up; winds up

transitive verb

1

: to bring to a conclusion : end

2

a

: to put in order for the purpose of bringing to an end

winds up the meeting

b

British : to effectuate the winding up of

intransitive verb

1

a

: to come to a conclusion

b

: to arrive in a place, situation, or condition at the end or as a result of a course of action

wound up as millionaires

2

: to make a pitching windup

Synonyms of wind up

• end
• finish
• conclude

Examples of wind up in a Sentence

try to wind up the performance, as we're almost out of time

her speeches usually wind up with one last joke

Recent Examples on the Web

Whichever team winds up losing can point to a number of moments that could have changed the outcome. —Mark Anderson, Twin Cities, 10 June 2026

Pairs that have nonetheless wound up on the resale market typically sell in the $1,000 to $2,000 range but also have hit as high as $4,800. —Ian Servantes, Footwear News, 10 June 2026

The storm could bring half-dollar-sized hail and winds up to 60 mph, according to the weather service warnings. —Seth Klamann, Denver Post, 8 June 2026

And so the end result could still wind up looking disappointingly generic. —Justin Davidson, Curbed, 8 June 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1546, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Rhymes for wind up

• backup
• blowup
• breakup
• buildup
• checkup
• cleanup
• holdup
• hookup
• lineup
• lockup
• makeup
• markup

Kids Definition

windup

1 of 3 noun

wind·​up ˈwīn-ˌdəp 

1

a

: the act of bringing to an end

b

: a last act or part : finish

2

: a series of motions (as swinging the arms over the head) made by a pitcher prior to releasing a pitch

windup

2 of 3 adjective

: having a spring wound by hand

windup toys

wind up

3 of 3 verb

(ˈ)wīn-ˈdəp

1

: to bring or come to a conclusion : end

let's wind up the meeting quickly

2

: to arrive in a place, situation, or state

wound up losing the game

wound up as millionaires

3

: to make a windup in pitching a baseball

Legal Definition

wind up

transitive verb

wound up; winding up

: to bring to an end by taking care of unfinished business

ordered to wind up his practice

specifically : to conclude by removing liabilities and distributing any remaining assets to partners or shareholders

wind up the business and affairs of a corporation in dissolution

wind up a receivership