booked

Meanings

1. 1adjectiveafter a verb

   Having every place, seat, or time slot already reserved, with nothing left.

   Grammar: Often used with be or fully/completely: The hotel is booked.

   Patterns

   • fully booked
   • booked up
   • booked solid

   The restaurant is fully booked on Saturday.

   I tried to get a table, but they were booked up.

   The flight to Rome is booked solid until Monday.

2. 2adjectiveafter a verbinformal

   Very busy, with a calendar full of appointments or plans.

   Grammar: Informal; used about people's schedules: I'm booked all week.

   Patterns

   • booked until a date
   • booked with something

   I'm booked all afternoon, so can we talk tomorrow?

   The dentist is booked for three weeks.

   She's booked solid this month with weddings.

3. 3adjectivebefore a noun

   Arranged and paid for in advance, such as a ticket or room.

   Grammar: Goes before a noun: a booked flight, a booked table.

   The booked flight leaves at noon.

   Please bring your booked tickets to the gate.

4. 4verbtransitive

   Past tense and past participle of book: reserved, or formally recorded by the police.

   Grammar: The -ed form of book: she booked a room; he was booked for speeding.

   Patterns

   • booked someone into somewhere
   • booked for something

   We booked a cabin by the lake.

   The police booked him for driving without a license.

   The referee booked two players in the first half.

Word forms

Common combinations

fully booked

The tour is fully booked until June.

booked solid

The studio is booked solid this week.

booked up

All the hotels were booked up for the festival.

already booked

I'm sorry, that room is already booked.

booked in advance

Tickets must be booked in advance.

Synonyms and how they differ

reserved

Reserved is formal for a seat or table held for someone, while booked can also mean the time is full.

full

Full tells you only that there is no space, while booked implies the places were taken by reservation.

busy

Busy describes someone occupied right now, whereas booked suggests their time is already committed to scheduled plans.

sold out

Sold out is used for tickets and goods that are all purchased, but booked is used for rooms, tables, and people's time.

Opposites

Word family

book verb

to reserve something in advance

booking noun

a reservation

overbooked adjective

with more reservations than places

rebook verb

to reserve again

Commonly confused: booked or booked vs. reserved?

Practice

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “booked”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

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