Words & TermsWar, service and history
wind-up
A fright or state of fear.
In a sentence
In this historical or contextual use, “wind-up” means a fright or state of fear.
Where it came from
Australian service records document wind-up in historical military use; the expression also has wider English history.
- Initial era
- 1900–1949
- Where used
- Australian military usage; historical