shoestring 1 of 2

noun

ˈshü-ˌstriŋ How to pronounce shoestring (audio)
Definition of shoestringnext
as in dime
a very small sum of money trying to start a business on a shoestring

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

shoestring

2 of 2

adjective

as in spindly

Related Words

Dissimilar Words

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of shoestring
Noun
Women build communities, launch initiatives, and create coalitions on shoestring budgets while the institutional resources that would let those efforts scale remain largely inaccessible. — Lisa Curtis, Forbes.com, 1 July 2026 Completing the hat trick in pitiful style, Taking on the World was shot on a shoestring budget, helmed by the man behind Highlander III, and forced to rely on stock footage of real-life footballers. — Jon O'Brien, Vulture, 26 June 2026
Adjective
In Greater Cincinnati, a mighty, mostly volunteer needle-exchange effort on a shoestring budget started in 2014. — Terry Demio, USA TODAY, 15 Dec. 2019 First-time customer Regan Hau ate the chili alongside a basket of shoestring french fries, an item Waite said Town Topic didn’t offer until the ‘80s. — Kansas City Star, 22 Aug. 2025 See All Example Sentences for shoestring
Recent Examples of Synonyms for shoestring
  1. dime
  2. spindly
  3. stringy
  4. wispy
  5. twiggy
  6. lanky
  7. willowy
  8. reedy
Noun
  • My thumb and index finger pinched together to grab a dime, while my middle finger reached farther to pick up coins that had rolled under the edge of a cabinet.
    — Steven Lautzenheiser, The Conversation, 6 July 2026
  • The coins include the quarter, dime, nickel and penny, as well as signature coins, all with unique elements and features emblematic of the nation's milestone.
    — Nicole Fallert, USA Today, 28 June 2026
Definition of dime
Adjective
  • Oh no, Armand’s got his spindly roots in the band!
    — Rebecca Alter, Vulture, 29 June 2026
  • In the video, the musician trashes an apartment, gets out of a cop car, and runs through a field at golden hour with spindly pylons in the background.
    — Maya Georgi, Rolling Stone, 24 June 2026
Definition of spindly
Adjective
  • Among them is, naturally, the stringy bikini look, and Kylie Jenner appears more than happy to kick off the season while soaking in every second of her dreamy Kylie Cosmetics trip.
    — Daisy Maldonado, InStyle, 4 June 2026
  • Everyone is bulbous, stringy, or malformed.
    — Jeremy Lybarger, Artforum, 2 June 2026
Definition of stringy
Adjective
  • With this capability, Rubin can reveal details of the cosmos across an enormous range of scales, from distant galaxies, to individual stars, to the wispy clouds of dust spread throughout our galaxy.
    — Jamie Carter, Forbes.com, 1 July 2026
  • While the look screams confidence with its crisp and clean cuts, the wispy and delicate ends that curl inward towards the jaw give a feminine touch.
    — Alyssa Rotunno, InStyle, 1 July 2026
Definition of wispy
Adjective
  • Their twiggy legs and bony frames exposed in bathing suits, the kids do indeed look extra vulnerable within the film’s savage landscape.
    — Beatrice Loayza, Variety, 25 May 2026
  • Hummingbirds need the safety of shrubs and twiggy trees to perch on.
    — Brandee Gruener, Southern Living, 21 May 2026
Definition of twiggy
Adjective
  • Gray, a lanky man with a gray mustache, volunteers as a docent at the Museum of Flight in Seattle, just across from Boeing Field.
    — Ian Bogost, The Atlantic, 12 June 2026
  • Green's first two seasons in college went according to script and the lanky downfield threat was as good as advertised, earning first-team All-SEC honors in back-to-back years.
    — Austin Perry OutKick, FOXNews.com, 9 June 2026
Definition of lanky
Adjective
  • The soft, willowy branches bear red flower spikes on the tips in warm months.
    — Steve Bender, Southern Living, 21 June 2026
  • Shredded vegetables — carrot, ginger, papaya, shallot and cucumber, some pickled and some fresh — are arranged, per the original name, over top in willowy repose.
    — Bill Addison, Los Angeles Times, 4 June 2026
Definition of willowy
Adjective
  • The prosecutor, Johann Frischman, laid out, in a reedy voice, the criminal complaint.
    — William Finnegan, New Yorker, 29 June 2026
  • Among those acolytes is Lucien (Jérémy Gillet), a reedy, repressed young virgin who yearns to be part of the gay community but hasn’t the courage to come out to his domineering mother Christine (Elisabeth Wiener), who also just happens to be the country’s very right-wing health minister.
    — Guy Lodge, Variety, 23 May 2026
Definition of reedy

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Cite this Entry

“Shoestring.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/shoestring. Accessed 8 Jul. 2026.

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