muscle-bound

adjective

Definition of muscle-boundnext
as in muscular

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Example Sentences

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.
Recent Examples of muscle-bound But their skeletons seemed peculiar—stocky and muscle-bound, with mashups of features seen in various groups of modern-day mammals. — Steve Brusatte, Scientific American, 1 June 2022
Recent Examples of Synonyms for muscle-bound
  1. muscular
  2. athletic
  3. powerful
  4. sinewy
  5. burly
  6. mighty
  7. strapping
  8. beefy
Adjective
  • The sense of doom freed them to push hard into a rich new pop direction, filling Sound of Lies with songs that were deeply felt and sometimes dark amid the muscular pop hooks.
    — Steve Appleford, SPIN, 31 Aug. 2026
  • The Brooks Ghost Max SE is built with a glide roll rocker sole that helps to minimize muscular strain near the ankles.
    — Amelia McBride, Travel + Leisure, 29 Aug. 2026
Definition of muscular
Adjective
  • Tom Holmoe, former BYU athletic director and football player, who won three Super Bowl rings as a player and one as a coach in the NFL, was also a participant in the study.
    — Mirin Fader, New York Times, 11 Sep. 2026
  • Between Wimbledon, Monaco Grand Prix, the World Cup and the NBA Finals, these key events drew a flood of brand activations beyond the companies that make athletic gear.
    — Alison Bringé, Forbes.com, 10 Sep. 2026
Definition of athletic
Adjective
  • This powerful radio telescope is expected to find tens of thousands of FRBs, a major boon for cosmology.
    — Robert Lea, Space.com, 10 Sep. 2026
  • Her response, like mine, seems to have been immediate and powerful.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 10 Sep. 2026
Definition of powerful
Adjective
  • One of Nebel’s major works was still there — The Wrestlers, a huge plaster work of two sinewy men locked in combat, which had been his thesis as a student.
    — Adriane Quinlan, Curbed, 30 July 2026
  • The White man, his sinewy, tattooed arms already beet-red from the sun, shouldered the cross from the center beam.
    — John Blake, CNN Money, 19 July 2026
Definition of sinewy
Adjective
  • Emmett Doyle is a burly and bearded union carpenter and musician in Minneapolis who writes and performs folk music about the struggles of the working class.
    — Emily Witt, New Yorker, 31 Aug. 2026
  • This burly and battle-tested Chaminade-Madonna offensive line is led by three-star 6-foot-5 guard Devon Munnings, who is committed to Liberty.
    — Ethan Hanson, Daily News, 27 Aug. 2026
Definition of burly
Adjective
  • Even in the early 1990s, one of Ferrari’s most unsuccessful periods of form in F1, when its cars lapped two seconds slower than the then-mighty McLaren or Williams teams, the home grand prix would still carry an extra weight.
    — Luke Smith, New York Times, 4 Sep. 2026
  • Travelers can spend a few weeks following the entire route or easily choose a section to experience the historic river towns, scenic overlooks, wildlife refuges, and communities built along the mighty Mississippi.
    — Abby Price, Travel + Leisure, 4 Sep. 2026
Definition of mighty
Adjective
  • Ser Duncan the Tall, is a strapping but awkward young man with little confidence and few skills.
    — Lorraine Ali, Los Angeles Times, 16 Jan. 2026
  • Henney is best known for playing the strapping and heroic Special Agent Matt Simmons on Criminal Minds.
    — Hoda Mallone, People.com, 13 Mar. 2025
Definition of strapping
Adjective
  • Parks and Tamburello openly flirted on their season of The Traitors, with the beefy Boston native and Southern belle often pairing up during the reality competition’s challenges.
    — Kathleen Perricone, Entertainment Weekly, 4 Sep. 2026
  • Both the Grand Canyon and ML-T previously traded out the original 2021 floating auxiliary front roof lights for a beefier front light bar during a 2024 refresh.
    — New Atlas, New Atlas, 13 Aug. 2026
Definition of beefy

Browse Nearby Words

muscle
muscle-bound
muscle car
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Cite this Entry

“Muscle-bound.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/muscle-bound. Accessed 13 Sep. 2026.

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