hem in
phrasal verbhem somebody/something in
- [often passive] to surround somebody/something so that they cannot move or grow easily synonym hedge somebody/something in
- The village is hemmed in on all sides by mountains.
- (figurative) She felt hemmed in by all their petty rules and regulations.
Definitions on the go
Look up any word in the dictionary offline, anytime, anywhere with the Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary app.
