as in tied
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 tethered
By the time rescuers arrived, juvenile puppies were roaming freely on the property, while adult dogs were tethered to trees.
—
Moná Thomas, PEOPLE, 4 Feb. 2026
An animal cruelty investigation involving two dogs has ignited outrage on social media, after photos revealed the pets were tethered and abandoned during Charlotte’s weekend snow storm.
—Mark Price, Charlotte Observer, 3 Feb. 2026
In addition to their family bond, the three are tethered by a house as each generation inherits it through the years.
—Ashley MacKin Solomon, San Diego Union-Tribune, 22 Jan. 2026
Following his arraignment, he was released on a $25,000 bond and ordered to be tethered to a GPS and continue mental health treatment.
—Austin Meek, New York Times, 22 Jan. 2026
Dogs can't be tethered for more than 30 minutes in temperatures below 30 degrees.
—CBS News, 20 Jan. 2026
If a president can take any action so long as it can be tethered, even tenuously, to national security—including imposing trade restrictions on mundane things like beer cans and furniture—what meaningful limits remain on his power?
—Inu Manak, Time, 16 Jan. 2026
For the next several years of development, the visualization was a line that tethered the players together, chosen because Schwarzstein’s offensive line coach at Stanford had used a line concept.
—Andrew Greif, NBC news, 10 Jan. 2026
Only an air hose and a rope tethered them to the surface.
—Tara Massouleh McCay, Southern Living, 4 Jan. 2026
Moná Thomas, PEOPLE, 4 Feb. 2026
An animal cruelty investigation involving two dogs has ignited outrage on social media, after photos revealed the pets were tethered and abandoned during Charlotte’s weekend snow storm.
—Mark Price, Charlotte Observer, 3 Feb. 2026
In addition to their family bond, the three are tethered by a house as each generation inherits it through the years.
—Ashley MacKin Solomon, San Diego Union-Tribune, 22 Jan. 2026
Following his arraignment, he was released on a $25,000 bond and ordered to be tethered to a GPS and continue mental health treatment.
—Austin Meek, New York Times, 22 Jan. 2026
Dogs can't be tethered for more than 30 minutes in temperatures below 30 degrees.
—CBS News, 20 Jan. 2026
If a president can take any action so long as it can be tethered, even tenuously, to national security—including imposing trade restrictions on mundane things like beer cans and furniture—what meaningful limits remain on his power?
—Inu Manak, Time, 16 Jan. 2026
For the next several years of development, the visualization was a line that tethered the players together, chosen because Schwarzstein’s offensive line coach at Stanford had used a line concept.
—Andrew Greif, NBC news, 10 Jan. 2026
Only an air hose and a rope tethered them to the surface.
—Tara Massouleh McCay, Southern Living, 4 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for tethered
Verb
-
Rai led by one stroke when play was suspended Thursday but bogeyed 18 early Friday to drop into a tie and shot a second-round 70, leaving him tied for 12th with South African Aldrich Potgeiter, Ryan Fox and 2021 Genesis champion Max Homa at the halfway point.—
Steve Galluzzo,
Los Angeles Times,
21 Feb. 2026
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Meanwhile Trump — a longtime friend of Epstein’s whose name allegedly appears in the files over a million times — and other figures working within or tied to his administration seem to not only hang above the fray, but enjoy the protection of the American justice system.—
Emily Zemler,
Rolling Stone,
20 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
On February 13th, Grace Van Patten and Jackson White and Grace Gummer and Mark Ronson watched Veronica Leoni’s Calvin Klein Collection come down the runway, while Rebecca Hall and Morgan Spector bounded between Fforme and Kallmeyer.—
Hannah Jackson,
Vogue,
14 Feb. 2026
-
Photos shared by the department show a silvery gray fox bounding majestically across a white snowy plain beneath towering, sunlit alpine peaks.—
Clara Harter,
Los Angeles Times,
11 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Tethered.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/tethered. Accessed 26 Feb. 2026.
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