English
rootbound
From root + bound.
Proto-Indo-European *wréh₂ds ‘root’
Proto-Germanic *wrōts ‘root’
Old Norse rót ‘root’
Old English rōt ‘root’
Middle English rote ‘underground part of a plant’
English root
Today it means
adj Having outgrown its pot, so that the roots are cramped and tangled.
Sources
Sources: Wiktionary, “rootbound”. By Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0, via kaikki.org (dump of Oct 3 2026); text adapted and restructured. Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word. License.
Etymograph / rootbound