seize up
/ˌsiz ˈʌp/
Word Rarity
Rare
Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.80 in modern English
18
Scrabble Score
7
Letters
1
Syllables
6
Unique Chars
Meaning
Example Sentences
- "Iceland's foreign currency market has seized up after the three largest banks collapsed."
- "In the 2004 film A Day Without a Mexican, Sergio Arau imagines, in mockumentary style, what would happen to California if its entire Mexican-immigrant population vanished. With so many housekeepers and farmworkers, teachers and gardeners, line cooks and police gone, the state seizes up."
- "I love casual fun – but seize up sexually in a serious relationship [title]"
- "All of this has spooked the world’s investors. The bond market seized up after Trump’s “Liberation Day” tariff announcement, as some analysts wondered whether the Fed would have to step in to provide liquidity."
- "It was hard to write as my fingers had seized up with the cold weather."
- "I have had over six years to think about my future and it does not look good. I … can expect no cure or improvement in my condition as my muscles and joints seize up through lack of use."
Etymology
The term originates c. 1870 referring to a machine which jammed up because of excessive heat or friction; it has been used figuratively since c. 1950.
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /ˌsiz ˈʌp/
- British English: /ˌsiːz ˈʌp/