hemmed

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.

See Examples For:

hemmed

Sitting on just over 8 square miles, Santa Monica is hemmed in by the Pacific on one side and Los Angeles neighborhoods on three others.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 6, 2026

Minetree has "cracking comic timing", the Independent said, but appeared to be "hemmed in by the Reese Witherspoon impression she's presumably been told to do".

From BBC ● Jun. 30, 2026

This new version isn’t hemmed in by the traditional structures of a book musical, allowing it to play fast and loose with the theatrical context without having to throw out the story or the score.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 1, 2026

It was whether federal courts, hemmed in by the modern law of habeas corpus, are permitted to say anything meaningful about that possibility at all.

From Slate ● Apr. 10, 2026

Off across the night, beyond the stone that hemmed them close, the dogs woke and began to bark.

From "A Clash of Kings" by George R.R. Martin