have one's hands tied

English

Verb

have one's hands tied (third-person singular simple present has one's hands tied, present participle having one's hands tied, simple past and past participle had one's hands tied)

1. To be powerless to act, to be thwarted.

   I'm sorry, there's nothing I can do. My hands are tied.

Translations

be powerless to act

• Finnish: olla kädet sidottuna (more often (genitive/possessive suffix +) kädet ovat sidotut)
• French: avoir les mains liées (fr)
• Greek: δένω τα χέρια (déno ta chéria)
• Icelandic: vera bundinn í báða skó
• Turkish: eli kolu bağlı olmak

See also

• tie someone's hands
• have one's hands full
• with one hand tied behind one's back