hidebound
/ˈhaɪd.baʊnd/
"hidebound" is a 9-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“hidebound” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as an adjective. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- Unranked
- below top-frequency English
- 9
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Bound with the hide of an animal.
Corpus desk
Index EN-hidebound · hidebound · English
hidebound · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables
- FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
- LEN-LONG 9 letters
- VOW-4 4 vowels
- CONFUS-0 No pairs
- VAR-0 0 variants
- BOOK-THIN "H" thin
- PHOTO-UNK Peer pending
Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern
Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | hidebound |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Adjective |
| IPA | /ˈhaɪd.baʊnd/ |
| Letters | 9 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Long-tail rank of “hidebound” in English
Rare enough to double-check
hidebound is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as anadjective, transcribed /ˈhaɪd.baʊnd/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 5 senses are on record.
hidebound has no tracked misspelling variants, since its letter sequence doesn't invite the usual edit-distance slips. This headword has no recorded confusable partner, which tends to mean the word is visually distinctive enough to stand on its own.
Etymologically, the entry records: From hide (“animal skin”, noun) + bound (“tied”, adjective). The correct English form is hidebound, spelled H-I-D-E-B-O-U-N-D.
Definition
- 1Bound with the hide of an animal.
- 2Having the skin adhering so closely to the ribs and back as not to be easily loosened or raised; emaciated.
- 3Having the bark so close and constricting that it impedes the growth.
- 4Stubborn; narrow-minded; inflexible.
- 5Niggardly; penurious; stingy.
Recorded use
Wiktionary examplesThese source excerpts show how hidebound appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.
Open the box in which his large hidebound book is kept. The faint smell of manure, over 150 years old, still rises from thick yellowing pages, and you begin to live his life.
But no matter where their place of residence, they were always accompanied by the hidebound chest that held the family papers.
Etymology
From hide (“animal skin”, noun) + bound (“tied”, adjective).
This word in other languages
Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.