tighten the pursestrings

A form of tighten the purse strings — To decrease spending or disallow increased spending; to increase control of spending.

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Meanings

verbtighten the pursestrings (third-person singular simple present tightens the pursestrings, present participle tightening the pursestrings, simple past and past participle tightened the pursestrings)

present singular third person tightens the pursestrings · participle present tightening the pursestrings · participle past tightened the pursestrings · past tightened the pursestrings

  1. alternativeAlternative form of tighten the purse strings.
Cite this entry
APA

tighten the pursestrings. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/tighten%20the%20pursestrings

MLA

“tighten the pursestrings.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/tighten%20the%20pursestrings. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “tighten the pursestrings,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/tighten%20the%20pursestrings.

Source: tighten the pursestrings on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.