ironbound
Americanadjective
-
bound with iron
-
unyielding; inflexible
-
(of a coast) rocky; rugged
Etymology
Origin of ironbound
Middle English word dating back to 1350–1400; see origin at iron, -bound 1
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Right now, he’s piloting “Man of La Mancha,” and he’s so excited that he brings a model of designer Allen Moyer’s dark, ironbound prison set and Ann Hould-Ward’s costume sketches to an interview.
From Washington Post • Mar. 19, 2015
He described 19th-century “path-makers,” highbred gentlemen who spent summers armchair-engineering intricate paths around Mount Desert Island’s barren 1,500-foot peaks, glacial lakes and ironbound shoreline.
From New York Times • Aug. 8, 2014
All but one are marked by an ironbound propriety of theme that is fatal to both their humor and their excitement.
From Time Magazine Archive
But under this genteel velveteen is the real ironbound Leahy.
From Time Magazine Archive
On the far side of the house I found him pressed close against the old ironbound oak door of the chapel.
From "Dracula" by Bram Stoker
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
