tie up

tie up (third-person singular simple present ties up, present participle tying up, simple past and past participle tied up)

1. To secure with rope, string, etc.
   • 1918, W. B. Maxwell, chapter 19, in The Mirror and the Lamp:

     At the far end of the houses the head gardener stood waiting for his mistress, and he gave her strips of bass to tie up her nosegay. This she did slowly and laboriously, with knuckly old fingers that shook.

   Don't forget to tie up your hair before you bake.

   The robbers tied up the bank employees before forcing a way into the vault.

2. (idiomatic) To occupy, detain, keep busy, or delay.

   He has been tying up the phone lines for hours now.

3. (idiomatic) To complete, finish, or resolve.

   I'd like to tie up the project before I leave.

• tie up loose ends

• tepui, uptie