wind up

Verb

wind up (third-person singular simple present winds up, present participle winding up, simple past and past participle wound up)

1. (literally, transitive) To wind (rope, string, mainsprings, etc.) completely.
   • I wound up the spool of rope.

   Antonyms:

   unwind, unspool, play out, wind down

2. (transitive) To put (a clock, watch, etc.) in a state of renewed or continued motion by winding the spring or other energy-storage mechanism.
   • I wound up the clock.
   • Your pocket watch will run for a long time if you wind up the spring all the way.
3. (broadly, figuratively, transitive) To tighten (someone or something) by winding or twisting.
   • The movie wound me up emotionally.

   Synonyms:

   bind, cinch, brace, clench, constrict, squeeze, tighten, taughten, tauten, tense

4. (broadly, figuratively, transitive) To excite.
   • Try not to wind up the kids too much right before bedtime.

   Synonyms:

   gin up, stimulate, work up, animate, awaken, electrify, enflame, enkindle, enthrill, exagitate

5. (broadly, figuratively, transitive) To upset; to anger or distress.
   • Of all their regrets, it was their inability to score an away goal that might wind up Klopp the most. Sadio Mané wasted a glorious chance in the first half and, late on, Mohamed Salah turned his shot against a post after a goal-line clearance had spun his way.2019 May 1, Daniel Taylor, “Lionel Messi magic puts Barcelona in command of semi-final with Liverpool”, in The Guardian

   Synonyms:

   burn up, get up, get someone's back up, rile up, aggravate, annoy, nettle, rankle, ruffle, sting

6. (literally, transitive) To roll up (a car window or well bucket, etc., by cranking).
   • Wind up your window — it's starting to rain.

   Synonyms:

   roll up, raise

   Antonyms:

   wind down, roll down, lower

7. (copulative, intransitive) To end up; to arrive or result.
   • Mess around with drugs and wind up broke.
   • I followed the signs, and I wound up getting nowhere.

   Synonyms:

   end up, turn out, turn up

   Antonyms:

   start out

8. (intransitive) To increase (in some aspect).
   • Now, things got even more confusing. Farenholt and Laffey hadn't spotted the incoming Japanese Navy vessels, and were winding up to full speed to more-quickly bypass the cruisers. Duncan, of course, could see the radar contacts to its starboard, and so assumed that this increase in speed by its...2020 December 9, Drachinifel, 15:25 from the start, in Guadalcanal Campaign - Cape Esperance (IJN 1 : 2 USN), archived from the original on 04 Dec 2022

   Synonyms:

   go up, shoot up, accelerate, accrue, aggrandize, augment, embiggen, enhance, enlarge, greaten

9. (transitive) To conclude, complete, or finish (something).
   • Even though he had bad news, he tried to wind up his speech on a positive note.
   • A general feast, of which all the male inhabitants of the town partake, winds up the proceedings at the close of the nineteen days.1911, James George Frazer, The Golden Bough, volume 8, page 231

   Synonyms:

   round off, absolve, complete, conclude, consummate, discontinue, do, end, finalize, finish

10. (transitive) To dissolve (a partnership or corporation) and liquidate its assets.
11. (UK, transitive) To play a prank (on); to take the mickey (out of) or mock.
    • Twenty quid? Are you winding me up?

    Synonyms:

    pull one's leg, take for a ride, befool, chaff, disparage, forgab, frump, gleek, jape, jeer

12. (intransitive) To make the preparatory movements for a certain kind of pitch.
    • Paige seemed to be winding up for a fastball but then switched it up.