Definition of "rootbound" []

• (of a potted plant) grown too large for its container resulting in matting or tangling of the roots (adjective)
• Having the roots matted or densely tangled (adjective)

WordNet. Princeton University. 2010.

• "They looked like chrysanthemums, bedraggled, rootbound, and probably frozen now."
• "I think the ideas get rootbound without that refreshing input from the real world."
• "If a rootbound plant is not available, use a tiny clay flowerpot or a small cardboard transplanting pot, a large tangled mass of string stuffed into the pot, and an artificial flower to be inserted into the string mass."