loosen the purse strings en · VERB
Pronunciation
- (Australia) audio
Meanings
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(colloquial, idiomatic) To increase spending or allow increased spending; to relax control of spending.
He thought the effect of this language from the Prime Minister had been to loosen the purse-strings of the Treasury.
1848, Parliament of Great Britain, “The Parliamentary debates”, in (Please provide the book title or journal name), volume 96, page cdlvii:Proponents of the counterterrorism agenda might respond by being less inclined to loosen the purse strings than they would have been if offered a convincing...
2004, The 9/11 Commission report, final report of the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks upon the United States (authorized edition), National Commission on Terrorist Attacks upon the United States, page 358:
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| loosened the purse strings | Tense=Past, VerbForm=Part | lexicographic | |
| loosened the purse strings | Tense=Past | lexicographic | |
| loosen the pursestrings | alternative | lexicographic | |
| loosen the purse-strings | alternative | lexicographic | |
| loosening the purse strings | Tense=Pres, VerbForm=Part | lexicographic | |
| loosens the purse strings | Number=Sing, Person=3, Tense=Pres | lexicographic |
Antonyms
Relateds
power of the purse · public purse · reimburse · hold the purse strings · disburse · loosen the apron strings
Translations (3)
fi hellittää kukkaron nyörejä (to increase or allow to increase spending) · cmn 放鬆銀根 /放松银根 (to increase or allow to increase spending) · it allentare i cordoni della borsa (to increase or allow to increase spending)