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Synonyms

shoestring

American  
[shoo-string] / ˈʃuˌstrɪŋ /

noun

  1. a shoelace.

  2. a very small amount of money.

  3. shoestrings. shoestring potatoes.

adjective

  1. consisting of or characterized by a small amount of money.

    living on a shoestring budget.
shoestring British  
/ ˈʃuːˌstrɪŋ /

noun

  1. another word for shoelace

  2. informal

    1. a very small or petty amount of money (esp in the phrase on a shoestring )

    2. ( as modifier )

      a shoestring budget
"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
shoestring Idioms  

  1. see on a shoestring.

Etymology

Origin of shoestring

First recorded in 1610–20; shoe + string

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.

Rather, he’s using a shoestring budget to concoct left-of-center sights that feel like a peek into a specific Los Angeles netherworld.

From Salon • Apr. 5, 2026

Over the past five years, Tartt, Bandy and a shoestring staff have trained some 60 people on farming the mountain valleys.

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 17, 2025

"It was all done on a shoestring budget," he said.

From BBC • Sep. 23, 2025

“Any abortion recovery room I’ve ever been in has the good tea,” Krajewski told me, adding that it’s usually staff who pay for these refreshments since clinics often operate on shoestring budgets.

From Slate • Sep. 7, 2025

Mama screamed, and I guess I was scared, because I just felt frozen—like I was watchin ’ myself on TV—as the movin’ steps gradually gobbled my shoestring and pulled my foot toward its teeth.

From "Tears of a Tiger" by Sharon M. Draper

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.