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wind up

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wind someone up

 

1. Inf. Fig. to get someone excited. That kind of music really winds me up!

2. . Inf. Fig. to get someone set to do a lot of talking. (Fig. on winding up a clock.) The excitement of the day wound Kelly up and she talked almost all night. A good movie tends to wind me up for a while.

See also: up, wind

wind something up

 

1. Lit. to tighten the spring in something, such as a watch or a clock. Please wind your watch up now—before it runs down. Wind up your watch before you forget.

2. Fig. to conclude something. Today we'll wind that deal up with the bank. I have a few items of business to wind up. Then I'll be with you.

See also: up, wind

wind up (as) something

to end up as something. Roger wound up as a millionaire. He thought he would wind up a pauper.

See also: up, wind

wind up

somehow to end up in some fashion. I don't want to wind up broke and depressed. You don't want to wind up like Ted, do you?

See also: up, wind

wind up

(somewhere) Go to end up (somewhere).

See also: up, wind

wind up

to reach a place or condition end up If he continues to spend money this way, he's going to wind up in bankruptcy. How did you ever wind up in this little town in the middle of nowhere?

See also: up, wind

wind up (something)

also wind something up

to end or finish something The meeting just wound up, so let's go to lunch now. We should be able to wind the discussion up by 10 o'clock.

See also: up, wind

wind up

1. Come or bring to a finish, as in The party was winding up, so we decided to leave, or Let's wind up the meeting and get back to work. [Early 1800s] Also see wind down.

2. Put in order, settle, as in She had to wind up her affairs before she could move. [Late 1700s]

3. Arrive somewhere following a course of action, end up, as in We got lost and wound up in another town altogether, or If you're careless with your bank account, you can wind up overdrawn. [Colloquial; early 1900s]

See also: up, wind

wind up

v.

1. To coil the spring of some mechanism completely by turning a stem or cord, for example: I wound up my alarm clock. If you wind this toy soldier up, it will march across the floor.

2. To coil something completely, as onto a spool or into a ball: He wound the excess string up into a ball. She wound up the cable around the rod.

3. To come to a finish; end: The meeting wound up at 9:00.

4. To bring something to a finish; end something: We need to wind up this project before January. This card game is fun, but let's wind it up before dinner.

5. To put something in order; settle something: She wound up her affairs before leaving the country.

6. To arrive in some place or situation after or because of a course of action: I took a long walk and wound up at the edge of town. If you spend too much money now, you'll wind up in debt.

7. To distress or perturb someone or something mentally or emotionally: Seeing those awful newspaper headlines really winds me up. The students are getting wound up about all the homework they have.

8. To twist the body in preparation to throw or hit: The soccer player wound up and shot the ball into the net.

See also: up, wind