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5 dictionary results for: loosen

Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This

loos·en

[loo-suh

n] Pronunciation Key

–verb (used with object)

1.	to unfasten or undo, as a bond or fetter.

2.	to make less tight; slacken or relax: to loosen one's grasp.

3.	to make less firmly fixed in place: to loosen a tooth.

4.	to let loose or set free from bonds, restraint, or constraint.

5.	to make less close or compact in structure or arrangement.

6.	to make less dense or coherent: to loosen the soil in a garden.

7.	to relax in strictness or severity, as restraint or discipline: to loosen restrictions on trade.

8.	to relieve (the bowels) of their constipated condition.

–verb (used without object)

9.	to become loose or looser (sometimes fol. by up): His hold loosened. Your shoes will loosen up with wear.

[Origin: 1350–1400; ME loosnen. See loose, -en¹

]

—Related forms

loos·en·er, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.

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American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

loos·en   (lōō'sən) Pronunciation Key
v.   loos·ened, loos·en·ing, loos·ens

v.   tr.

To untie or make looser.
To free from restraint, pressure, or strictness.
To free (the bowels) from constipation.

v. intr.
To become loose or looser.

[Middle English lousnen, losnen, from losen, from los, loose; see loose.]

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The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

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WordNet - Cite This Source - Share This

loosen
verb
1.	make loose or looser; "loosen the tension on a rope" [ant: stiffen]
2.	make less severe or strict; "The government relaxed the curfew after most of the rebels were caught" [syn: relax]
3.	become less severe or strict; "The rules relaxed after the new director arrived" [syn: relax]
4.	disentangle and raise the fibers of; "tease wool" [syn: tease]
5.	cause to become loose; "undo the shoelace"; "untie the knot"; "loosen the necktie" [syn: untie]
6.	make less dense; "loosen the soil"
7.	become loose or looser or less tight; "The noose loosened"; "the rope relaxed" [ant: stiffen]

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Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

Loosen

Loos"en\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Loosened; p. pr. & vb. n. Loosening.] [See Loose, v. t.]

1. To make loose; to free from tightness, tension, firmness, or fixedness; to make less dense or compact; as, to loosen a string, or a knot; to loosen a rock in the earth.

After a year's rooting, then shaking doth the tree good by loosening of the earth. --Bacon.

2. To free from restraint; to set at liberty..

It loosens his hands, and assists his understanding. --Dryden.

3. To remove costiveness from; to facilitate or increase the alvine discharges of. --Bacon.

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Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

Loosen

Loos"en\, v. i. To become loose; to become less tight, firm, or compact. --S. Sharp.

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