beholden

[ bih-hohl-duhn ]

adjective

1. obligated; indebted:

   a man beholden to no one.

   Synonyms: liable, grateful, bound

beholden

/ bɪˈhəʊldən /

adjective

1. indebted; obliged; under a moral obligation

Other Words From

• unbe·holden adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of beholden¹

1300–50; Middle English, adj. use of beholden, old past participle of behold

Word History and Origins

Origin of beholden¹

Old English behealden , past participle of behealdan to behold

Example Sentences

No one knows much about how Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy plan to accomplish that task, only that they and the president they will serve want big reforms not beholden to precedent.

From Los Angeles Times

Leaving the agreement would mean the US is no longer beholden to meeting set carbon emissions reductions.

From BBC

Hochman has scoffed at suggestions that he would be beholden to his police backers, often repeating a canned line that “nobody hates a bad cop more than a good cop.”

From Los Angeles Times

Parties that run on the theory that they need only more of the base to win become beholden to those core supporters in office.

From Los Angeles Times

He always blended reality and fiction, telling personal stories without being beholden to a documentary-style reciting of the facts.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• grateful
• obligated
• obliged