Definitions for Bondageˈbɒn dɪdʒ

Random House Webster's College Dictionary

bond•age^*ˈbɒn dɪdʒ(n.)

slavery or involuntary servitude; serfdom.
the state of being bound by or subjected to some external power or control.
the state or practice of being tied up, chained, or the like, for sexual gratification.
Category: Law
Ref: villeinage.

^* Syn: See slavery.

Origin of bondage:

1250–1300; ME < AL bondagium. See bond2, -age

Princeton's WordNet

bondage(noun)
the state of being under the control of a force or influence or abstract power
"he was in bondage to fear:; "he sought release from his bondage to Satan"; "a self freed from the bondage of time"
bondage, slavery, thrall, thralldom, thraldom(noun)
the state of being under the control of another person
bondage(noun)
sexual practice that involves physically restraining (by cords or handcuffs) one of the partners

Wiktionary

bondage(Noun)
The state of being enslaved or the practice of slavery.
In Judeo-Christian tradition, the Israelites fled bondage at the hands of the Egyptians, only to wander in the wilderness for the next four decades.
bondage(Noun)
The state of lacking freedom; constraint.
He lived in financial bondage to his cocaine habit; no matter how much he earned, it all seemed to disappear up his nose.
bondage(Noun)
The practice of tying people up for sexual pleasure.
Their marriage broke up when she discovered he had been engaging in bondage games with a local dominatrix while he was supposedly working out at the gym.

Origin: From bondage, from (Anglo-Latin) bondagium, from bond, from bonda, of origin, from bóndi, bóandi, from bóa, búa, from būanan, from bhōw-. Cognate with and bóndi, bo, bauen, boer, bower. See also neighbour, booth, build.

Webster Dictionary

Bondage(adj)
the state of being bound; condition of being under restraint; restraint of personal liberty by compulsion; involuntary servitude; slavery; captivity
Bondage(adj)
obligation; tie of duty
Bondage(adj)
villenage; tenure of land on condition of doing the meanest services for the owner