pen in
Confine within barriers
To pen in is to confine or enclose, as livestock penned in a corral.
The phrase extends to any situation of restriction or entrapment: We were penned in by traffic on all sides.
The feeling is of being surrounded with no easy escape.
- coop upConfine in tight quarters
- confineRestrict to boundaries
- shut awayIsolate by enclosing
- corralFenced livestock enclosure
- encloseShut in on all sides
close off · fence off · restrict · hold captive · jail · lock away · seal off · wall · beleaguer · paddock · constrain · trap · kettle · limit · immure · pigpen · surround · cage