beholden

English

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beholden

/bɪˈhəʊldən/ UK
/bɪˈhoʊldən/ Canada, US
/bɪˈhəʉldən/ Australia

Rhymes with -əʊldən

Where it comes from

From Middle English biholden (“beholden, obligated”), past participle of biholden (“to behold, look at”, modern behold), though that verb does not mean "to bind, obligate".

adjective beholding

not comparable, usually, followed by 'to' Obligated to provide, display, or do something for another; indebted, obliged for a bounden duty. From an early age, I had decided I wanted to be beholden to no one.

Translations

Every language

adj obligated, bound by moral obligation

Español	comprometido, obligado, endeudado, encalillado, adeudante
हिन्दी	बाध्य bādhya
Français	redevable
Deutsch	verpflichtet, gebunden
Русский	обя́занный objázannyj, призна́тельный priznátelʹnyj

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MLA

"beholden." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/beholden. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

beholden. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/beholden

Chicago

"beholden." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/beholden.

BibTeX

@misc{beholden_2026,
  title = {beholden},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/beholden},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}