hems in

VERB

enclose, restrict

Synonyms

WEAK

begird beset border bound cage circle circumscribe close in confine corral define edge encircle encompass envelop environ fence fringe girdle hedge in immure margin pen rim ring round shut shut in skirt surround verge

Antonyms

WEAK

let go release

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.

“That's why the young people are agitating right now for change,” he says, suggesting they are frustrated by a corrupt political system that hems in their potential.

From BBC • Nov. 29, 2024

Along with Japan's neighbouring island of Okinawa, Taiwan hems in Beijing's forces.

From Reuters • Jun. 7, 2022

Leko’s questionable opening choice allows White to achieve a dynamic, unbalanced position, and Kramnik hems in Black’s bishop with 18.

From Washington Times • Feb. 5, 2019

On the screen, this twisty-plotted farce hems in Groucho, Chico and Harpo’s comic energy.

From Seattle Times • Feb. 13, 2017

The serene and impartial day that arches from verge to verge in War and Peace, the blackness that hems in the ominous circle of the Brothers Karamazov—it is a perfect contrast.

From The Craft of Fiction by Lubbock, Percy