wind up
Verb (transitive):
- To tighten the spring of a mechanical device, such as a clock or toy, by turning a key or knob.
- To bring something to a conclusion or end; to finish or settle.
- To provoke or agitate someone, often deliberately.
Verb (intransitive):
- To arrive in a particular place, state, or condition as a final result of a process or series of events.
Verb (transitive - to coil a spring): You need to wind up the music box for it to play. He winds up his grandfather's pocket watch every morning.
Verb (transitive - to conclude): The CEO will wind up the meeting with some final announcements. They decided to wind up the company after years of losses.
Verb (transitive - to provoke): Don't say that; you'll just wind up your brother. His constant teasing was meant to wind her up.
Verb (intransitive - to end in a state): If you're not careful, you'll wind up in trouble. After traveling for a year, I wound up back in my hometown.
"to wind up [someone]": To deliberately annoy or tease someone until they become irritated or angry. He loves to wind up his colleagues with his controversial opinions.
Legal/Formal Conclusion: Used in formal contexts, especially business or legal, to mean the final steps of closing an operation. The court appointed a lawyer to wind up the estate.
Wind-up (noun/adjective): Refers to the conclusion of something or a mechanical device operated by winding. The wind-up of the project took longer than expected. (noun - conclusion) She has a collection of vintage wind-up toys. (adjective - mechanical)
Wound up (adjective): Describes a state of being tense, anxious, or agitated. She was too wound up to sleep before the exam.
- Conclude, Finish, End, Terminate (for the meaning of ending something).
- Agitate, Provoke, Annoy, Irritate (for the meaning of provoking someone).
- Coil, Tighten, Crank (for the mechanical action).
- End up, Finish up, Land up (for the intransitive meaning of final state).
- Wind down: To gradually relax or bring something to a gradual end. (Opposite in meaning to 'wind up' in the context of concluding).
- "Wind up [doing something]": To eventually do something, often unexpectedly.
- "To be wound up": To be in a state of nervous excitement or agitation.
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coil the spring of (some mechanical device) by turning a stem
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wind your watch
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stimulate sexually
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This movie usually arouses the male audience
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give a preliminary swing to the arm pitching
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finally be or do something
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He ended up marrying his high school sweetheart
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he wound up being unemployed and living at home again
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