Definition

Verb: - To shut up or confine within an enclosure or within any bounds or limits. It implies securing something or someone by placing them inside a restricted area.

Usage

This verb is used to describe the action of placing and securing something, often living beings, into a confined space. It carries a sense of forceful or secure containment. - The rancher will pound up the cattle before the storm arrives. - After the escape attempt, the guards had to pound up the prisoners more securely.

Advanced Usage

• Passive Construction: Often used in passive voice to describe the state of being confined.
  • The stray dogs were pounded up by animal control.
• Figurative Use: While less common, it can be used metaphorically for non-physical confinement.
  • He pounded up his emotions, refusing to let them show.

Variants and Related Words

• Pound (verb): To hit repeatedly; to crush into a powder; or to confine animals. (e.g., , ).
• Compound (noun/verb): An enclosed area or to mix together. This is a related concept of an enclosure but is a distinct word.
• Pen up (phrasal verb): A close synonym meaning to enclose in a pen.

Synonyms

• Confine
• Enclose
• Shut up
• Pen in
• Corral

Related Phrasal Verbs

• Pound into: To hit or shape something by repeated blows. (e.g., ). This is distinct from "pound up."
• Pound out: To produce something, like music or a solution, through forceful effort. (e.g., ).

Related Idioms

No common idioms directly feature "pound up."

Verb

1. shut up or confine in any enclosure or within any bounds or limits
   • The prisoners are safely pounded