let loose
idiom
1
: to allow (someone or something) to move or go freely
He let the dogs loose in the courtyard.
cattle let loose to graze on the green fields
—often used figurativelya director who's willing to let her actors loose to interpret their roles however they see fit
how to stop the violence that has been let loose on the city
2
: to produce (something, such as a cry) in a sudden and forceful way
The crowd let loose an enormous groan when the pass was intercepted.
She let loose (with) a scream.
Examples of let loose in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
At the age of eight, he was let loose in the library of his late father, a professor of moral philosophy, and a part of Leibniz never left.
—
Anthony Gottlieb, The New Yorker, 6 Jan. 2025
The two of them winced when a gunman raised his rifle with one hand into the air and let loose a salvo.
—Nabih Bulos, Los Angeles Times, 9 Dec. 2024
References to 1950s ephemera score writing so alive that the sentences seem almost to vibrate, like particles let loose by a madman.
—Alexander Nazaryan, New York Times, 27 Dec. 2024
The comedian who let loose a series of racist jokes, some about Puerto Rico, at former President Donald Trump’s Madison Square Garden rally on Sunday night workshopped the material the night before at a local comedy club.
—Ignacio Torres, NBC News, 28 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for let loose 
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Anthony Gottlieb, The New Yorker, 6 Jan. 2025
The two of them winced when a gunman raised his rifle with one hand into the air and let loose a salvo.
—Nabih Bulos, Los Angeles Times, 9 Dec. 2024
References to 1950s ephemera score writing so alive that the sentences seem almost to vibrate, like particles let loose by a madman.
—Alexander Nazaryan, New York Times, 27 Dec. 2024
The comedian who let loose a series of racist jokes, some about Puerto Rico, at former President Donald Trump’s Madison Square Garden rally on Sunday night workshopped the material the night before at a local comedy club.
—Ignacio Torres, NBC News, 28 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for let loose
Dictionary Entries Near let loose
Cite this Entry
“Let loose.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/let%20loose. Accessed 18 Jan. 2025.
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