leading strings

[ lee-ding ]

plural noun
  1. strings for leading and supporting a child learning to walk.

  2. excessively restraining guidance: His parents tried to keep him in leading strings, but he finally married and moved away.

Origin of leading strings

1
First recorded in 1670–80

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use leading strings in a sentence

  • "I reckon I will have to put leading strings on both of you," replied Lawrence, with a smile.

  • He allowed himself to be taken in leading-strings; this, his first romantic adventure, gave him intense pleasure.

    The conquest of Rome | Matilde Serao
  • And then he was amenable to flattery, and few that are so are proof against the leading-strings of their flatterers.

    Orley Farm | Anthony Trollope
  • He declared he would not submit his works to any ones correction; and that he would no longer be kept in leading-strings.

  • Meanwhile the English drama, freed from its leading strings, will find its own way for itself.

    The English Stage | Augustin Filon