What does "fetter" mean?
A chain or similar object used to bind a person or animal, often by its legs.
Fetter
/ˈfet.ə/ name, noun, verb
name, noun, verb ·Common ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A chain or similar object used to bind a person or animal, often by its legs.
- Grammar: fetter is listed as name, noun, verb.
- Nearest alternatives: anchor, arrest, barrier, bearing rein.
- Useful contrasts: advance, autonomy, emancipation.
- Usage evidence: Passion's too fierce to be in fetters bound.
How to use "fetter"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "fetter" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "fetter" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "fetter" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "fetter" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "fetter" is acting as name, noun, verb in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "anchor" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "fetter", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A chain or similar object used to bind a person or animal, often by its legs. plural, usually
- 2 a shackle for the ankles or feet wordnet
- 3 Anything that restricts or restrains. figuratively
"Passion's too fierce to be in fetters bound."
Verb
- 1 To shackle or bind up with fetters. transitive
"The Begums' ministers, on the contrary, to extort from them the disclosure of the place which concealed the treasures, were, […] after being fettered and imprisoned, led out on to a scaffold, and this array of terrours proving unavailing, the meek tempered Middleton, as a dernier resort, menaced them with a confinement in the fortress of Chunargar. Thus, my lords, was a British garrison made the climax of cruelties!"
- 2 restrain with fetters wordnet
- 3 To restrain or impede; to hamper. transitive
Proper Noun
- 1 A surname.
Antonyms
Example
"Passion's too fierce to be in fetters bound."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "fetter"?
Common synonyms include: anchor, arrest, barrier, bearing rein, bilbo, bind.
How do you use "fetter" in a sentence?
Passion's too fierce to be in fetters bound.
How do you pronounce "fetter"?
Pronounced /ˈfet.ə/.
Etymology
From Middle English feter, from Old English feter, Proto-West Germanic *fetur, from Proto-Germanic *feturaz (“fetter”), from Proto-Indo-European *ped- (“to step, walk; to fall, stumble”). Related to foot. Cognates Cognate with Dutch veter (“cable, chain, hawser; bond, fetter”), Faroese fjøtur (“fetter”), Icelandic fjötur (“fetter”), Swedish fjätter (“fetter, shackle”); also Irish feadh (“extent, length”), feá (“fathom”), Scottish Gaelic feadh (“extent, length; fathom”), Latgalian pāda (“foot”), Latvian pēda (“foot”), Lithuanian pėda (“foot”), Belarusian па́даць (pádacʹ, “to fall”), Bulgarian па́дам (pádam, “to grop, fall”), Czech padat (“to fall”), Polish padać (“to fall”), Russian па́дать (pádatʹ, “to fall”), Serbo-Croatian padati, падати (“to fall”), Slovene padati (“to fall”), Ukrainian па́дати (pádaty, “to fall”), Latin peior, pejor (“worse”), Ancient Greek πέδη (pédē, “fetter, shackle; anklet, bangle”), Armenian ետ (et, “back, backward”), հետ (het, “back; with”), Ossetian фестӕг (festæg), фистӕг (fistæg, “pedestrian”), Old Persian 𐎱𐎿𐎫𐎡 (p-s-t-i, “foot soldier, infantryman”), Sanskrit पद्यते (padyate, “to fall, topple; to perish”), Hittite 𒁉𒂊𒁕𒀭 (“place; floor, ground”).