Meaning & use
bond
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Meanings
nouncountable
A strong feeling of connection between people.
Grammar: Often with between: the bond between friends.
Patterns
- a bond between people
- a bond with someone
A close bond formed between the two sisters.
The trip strengthened our bond.
She felt a bond with her classmates.
nouncountablefinance
A certificate showing that someone has lent money to a government or company that will repay it with interest.
Grammar: Often government bond.
Patterns
- buy bonds
- a bond issued by someone
He bought a ten-year government bond.
The city issued bonds to build a school.
nouncountablechemistry
A force that holds atoms together in a molecule.
Grammar: Chemistry usage: covalent bond.
Patterns
- a bond between atoms
Water has two hydrogen bonds in its structure.
Heat can break the chemical bond.
verbtransitive or intransitive
To join firmly, or to form a close relationship.
Grammar: Often intransitive with with: bond with a baby.
Patterns
- bond with someone
- bond something to something
Parents bond with their newborns quickly.
The glue bonds metal to plastic.
The team bonded over the long trip.
Word forms
| plural | bonds |
|---|---|
| third person singular | bonds |
| past tense | bonded |
| past participle | bonded |
| -ing form | bonding |
Common combinations
- close bond
- They share a close bond.
- government bond
- A government bond is considered safe.
- strengthen the bond
- Cooking together strengthened the bond.
- chemical bond
- A chemical bond joins the atoms.
- form a bond
- Puppies form a bond with their owners.
Synonyms and how they differ
- tie
- Tie is similar for relationships but also can mean an obligation, with less warmth.
- link
- Link is a neutral connection and doesn't suggest feeling.
- security
- Security is a wider financial term covering stocks too; a bond is specifically a loan.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: bond or bound?
bond vs bound
Bound is the past tense of bind, and it also means heading somewhere; bond is the connection itself.
Practice
Investors who want a steady, low-risk income often buy a government ___.
Choose one answer.
A government bond is a loan certificate paying interest. Bound, band and bind are different words.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “bond”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.