loosen
Americanverb (used with object)
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to unfasten or undo, as a bond or fetter.
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to make less tight; slacken or relax.
to loosen one's grasp.
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to make less firmly fixed in place.
to loosen a tooth.
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to let loose or set free from bonds, restraint, or constraint.
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to make less close or compact in structure or arrangement.
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to make less dense or coherent.
to loosen the soil in a garden.
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to relax in strictness or severity, as restraint or discipline.
to loosen restrictions on trade.
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to relieve (the bowels) of their constipated condition.
verb (used without object)
verb
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to make or become less tight, fixed, etc
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(often foll by up) to make or become less firm, compact, or rigid
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(tr) to untie
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(tr) to let loose; set free
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(often foll by up) to make or become less strict, severe, etc
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(tr) to rid or relieve (the bowels) of constipation
Other Word Forms
- loosener noun
Etymology
Origin of loosen
First recorded in 1350–1400, loosen is from the Middle English word loosnen. See loose, -en 1
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The agency also loosened its limit on production rates, allowing the company to boost output of the 737 MAX to 42 jets a month.
A 1971 Supreme Court decision briefly loosened these prohibitions, before tightening them again.
From Salon
A combination of open-source innovation and loosened chip controls could create a cheaper, more capable Chinese AI ecosystem.
From Barron's
In the pitch black of the mine, mud-splattered men with headlamps drill into the rock in two-man teams, using hydro drills with long, thin nozzles that shoot out pressurized water to loosen the ore.
AT SCHOOL, Coal tried to loosen the jumble in his head with art.
From Literature
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
