bottle (up)

verb

Definition of bottle (up)next
as in to hold back

Related Words

Relevance

Dissimilar Words

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for bottle (up)
  1. hold back
  2. measure
  3. curb
Verb
  • That said, the show’s decision to hold back on this reveal also makes narrative sense.
    — Hillary Busis, Vanity Fair, 11 Aug. 2026
  • Severe drought in 2022 on Lake Mead, which is held back by the Hoover Dam, exposed human remains and forced water officials in Las Vegas to pump water from deeper within the reservoir to continue to supply water to millions of people.
    — Ty O'Neil, Fortune, 8 Aug. 2026
Definition of hold back
Verb
  • The team deployed two high-altitude balloons with light sensors and 31 weather balloons to measure temperature, pressure, wind speed and humidity.
    — Katie Hunt, CNN Money, 8 Aug. 2026
  • Everything the team knows about how fast the plasma is actually moving comes from the simulations rather than from the telescope, and the magnetic field driving the whole thing has never been measured directly at this scale.
    — Jacek Krywko, ArsTechnica, 7 Aug. 2026
Definition of measure
Verb
  • Dozens of new laws take effect in Colorado on Wednesday as part of state lawmakers’ efforts to increase safety of ride-hailing apps, improve affordable housing development and curb Coloradans from leaving out trash that could lure bears.
    — Seth Klamann, Denver Post, 12 Aug. 2026
  • Existing laws already shield utilities from billions in wildfire damages, including Altadena’s deadly Eaton fire, as new proposals could further curb victim payouts and shift costs to homeowners’ insurance.
    — Melody Petersen, Los Angeles Times, 12 Aug. 2026
Definition of curb
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Browse Nearby Words

bottles (up)
bottle (up)
bottling (up)
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Bottle (up).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bottle%20%28up%29. Accessed 15 Aug. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

7 Pairs of Commonly Confused Words

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Words from the 'Odyssey'

The Longest Long Words List

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

The Words of the Week - Aug. 14

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

Words from the 'Odyssey'

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
image of a green cube out of place in a lineup of red spheres
Odd Word Out: Synonyms Vol. 2 Quiz Figure out which word isn't like the others.
See All