LOOSE


Meaning of LOOSE in English

[ lu:s ]

■ adjective

1》 not firmly or tightly fixed in place.

↘not held, tied, or packaged together.

↘not bound or tethered.

↘(of the ball in a game) in play but not in any player's possession.

2》 not fitting tightly or closely.

3》 not dense or compact.

↘(of play, especially in rugby) with the players far apart.

4》 relaxed; physically slack.

↘not strict or exact.

↘careless and indiscreet: ~ talk.

5》 dated promiscuous: a ~ woman.

■ noun ( the ~ ) Rugby ~ play.

■ verb

1》 set free.

↘untie; unfasten.

↘relax (one's grip).

2》 (usu. ~ something off ) discharge; fire.

Phrases

hang ~ informal, chiefly N. Amer. remain calm and untroubled.

on the ~ having escaped from confinement.

Derivatives

~ly adverb

~ness noun

Origin

ME loos 'free from bonds', from ON lauss , of Gmc origin.

Usage

The words ~ and lose should not be confused: see usage at lose .

Concise Oxford English vocab.      Сжатый оксфордский словарь английского языка.