leading strings

plural noun

ˈlē-
1
: strings by which children are sometimes supported when beginning to walk
2
: a state of dependence or tutelage : guidance
leading strings had been so willingly accepted that they were scarcely felt— E. M. Forster
—usually used in the phrase in leading strings
no longer in leading strings to his wife or his wife's father— Francis Hackett
passed his whole adolescence in his mother's leading strings— Van Wyck Brooks

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leading stone
leading strings
leading tone
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“Leading strings.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/leading%20strings. Accessed 30 Mar. 2025.

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