bindle

bindle

English

Pronunciation

• Rhymes: -ɪndəl
• (Received Pronunciation) enPR: bĭnʹdl, bĭnʹdəl, IPA^(key): /ˈbɪndl/,[1] /ˈbɪndəl/,[1]

• Audio (AU)

  (file)

Etymology 1

Unknown; compare Old English bindele (“a binding, a tying”)[2] from bindan (“to bind”), and bundle. Additionally, compare mister from master.

Noun

bindle (plural bindles)

1. (now Scotland)[2] Any given length of cord, rope, twine, etc, used to bind something.[2]

Etymology 2

The front hobo carries a bindle on the end of a stick.

Several bindles of cocaine

Probably a corruption of bundle; perhaps influenced by the preceding word bindle meaning "length of cord used to bind something".[1]

Noun

bindle (plural bindles)

1. (US and Canada slang) A bundle carried by a hobo (usually containing his possessions), often on a stick slung over the shoulder; a blanket roll.[1]
   • 2006, Cormac McCarthy, The Road, Alfred A. Knopf, OCLC 70630525:

     […] lastly he made a bindle in a plastic tarp of some cans of juice and cans of fruit and cans of vegetables […]

2. (US and Canada slang) Any bundle or package; specifically one containing narcotics such as cocaine, heroin, or morphine.[1]

Synonyms

• (bag of possessions): swag, swag bag (British, Australian)
• (bundle containing narcotics): baggie, baggy, deck

Hypernyms

• bag, sack

Derived terms

Terms derived from the sense a tramp’s bedding roll[1]

• bindle punk
• bindlestiff
• bindleman

Translations

tramp's or itinerant's bundle

Dutch: knapzak (nl) French: balluchon (fr) German: Bündel (de) n Polish: węzełek (pl) m Russian: кото́мка (ru) (kotómka) Ukrainian: торба (uk) f (torba), клунок (uk) m (klunok), вузлик m (vuzlyk)

References

1. “bindle²” listed in the Oxford English Dictionary [2^nd Ed.; 1989]
2. “ˈbindle¹” listed in the Oxford English Dictionary [2^nd Ed.; 1989]

Anagrams

• Dęblin, blinde