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Meaning & use

bundled up

adjective, verb·Everydayinformal

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UK/ˌbʌndld ˈʌp/
US/ˌbʌndld ˈʌp/

“bundled up” is a form of “bundle up”. See that entry for the full set of meanings.

Meanings

  1. adjectiveafter a verbinformal

    Wearing a lot of warm clothes to protect yourself from the cold.

    Grammar: Comes after be, get or look: the children were bundled up.

    Patterns

    • be bundled up against the cold
    • get bundled up

    The children were bundled up in coats, scarves and hats.

    I stood at the bus stop all bundled up against the wind.

    He looked so bundled up that I barely recognized him.

  2. verbtransitive or intransitiveinformal

    Past form of bundle up: to put warm clothes on someone, or to tie things together in a pile.

    Grammar: She bundled the baby up, or we bundled up before going out.

    Patterns

    • bundle someone up in something
    • bundle up before something

    She bundled up the baby in a thick blanket.

    We bundled up before heading out into the snow.

    He bundled up the old newspapers and tied them with string.

Word forms

base formbundle up
third person singularbundles up
past tensebundled up
-ing formbundling up

Common combinations

bundled up against the cold
They were bundled up against the cold.
bundled up in a coat
She was bundled up in a thick winter coat.
get bundled up
Get bundled up before you go outside.
all bundled up
The baby was all bundled up in her stroller.
bundle the kids up
We bundled the kids up for the snowy walk.

Synonyms and how they differ

wrapped up
Wrapped up is almost the same, but it can also suggest being covered by a blanket instead of clothes.
muffled up
Muffled up is more British and stresses the face and neck being covered with scarves.
rugged up
Rugged up is Australian and informal, meaning the same as bundled up.
layered up
Layered up stresses wearing several thin layers rather than one thick coat.

Opposites

underdressedstripped off

Word family

bundle noun
things tied or wrapped together
bundle verb
to tie or wrap things together
bundle up phrasal verb
to dress warmly
bundle off phrasal verb
to send someone away quickly

Commonly confused: bundled up or bundled?

bundled up vs bundled

Bundled alone means grouped or sold together, as in bundled software; bundled up adds the idea of warm clothing.

Practice

It was freezing outside, so the kids were all ___ in their winter coats and hats.

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