as in dime
a very small sum of money
trying to start a business on a shoestring
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in spindly
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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
Jill Goldsmith, Deadline, 7 Feb. 2025
This one easily fits in a shoestring budget and boasts some great mid-century looks, a nice combination for outfitting your home without breaking the bank.
—Will Porter, Architectural Digest, 5 Feb. 2025
Jennifer Epstein, Bloomberg.com, 7 May 2020
In Greater Cincinnati, a mighty, mostly volunteer needle-exchange effort on a shoestring budget started in 2014.
—Terry Demio, USA TODAY, 15 Dec. 2019
See All Example Sentences for shoestring
Noun
It was filmed in Los Angeles at several dozen locations in less than month on a shoestring budget.
—Jill Goldsmith, Deadline, 7 Feb. 2025
This one easily fits in a shoestring budget and boasts some great mid-century looks, a nice combination for outfitting your home without breaking the bank.
—Will Porter, Architectural Digest, 5 Feb. 2025
Adjective
In 2016, the Trump campaign relied on stadium rallies, TV appearances and social media to compensate for its shoestring budget and thin staffing.
—Jennifer Epstein, Bloomberg.com, 7 May 2020
In Greater Cincinnati, a mighty, mostly volunteer needle-exchange effort on a shoestring budget started in 2014.
—Terry Demio, USA TODAY, 15 Dec. 2019
See All Example Sentences for shoestring
Recent Examples of Synonyms for shoestring
Noun
-
After surviving the shipwreck, Pi’s joy, humor and despair turn on a dime as his lifeboat is beset by surviving animals — a hyena, a zebra, an orangutan named Orange Juice, and our Royal Bengal tiger.—
John Wenzel,
The Denver Post,
20 Mar. 2025
-
What's next: Residents can still plant trees on their own dime this spring.—
Carlie Kollath Wells,
Axios,
13 Mar. 2025
Adjective
-
Okay, okay — even though my spindly frame and past-his-prime age both immediately disqualify me from membership in this band of bodacious biceps, I am intrigued.—
Dalton Ross,
EW.com,
3 Apr. 2025
-
The eyes in the sky gazed down on a copse of spindly trees in western Russia, hooking onto where North Korean forces were coalescing, a Ukrainian special operations forces commander, who is being identified only by his call sign, Green, told Newsweek.—
Thomas G. Moukawsher,
Newsweek,
23 Mar. 2025
Adjective
-
After all, full and healthy hair ends (at any length) look far better than long, stringy, split strands.—
Kiana Murden,
Vogue,
25 Mar. 2025
-
White-rot fungi release aggressive enzymes that bust apart lignin to get at the other bits, leaving behind white, stringy wood that’s mostly cellulose.—
Katarina Zimmer,
Smithsonian Magazine,
28 Feb. 2025
Adjective
-
His long, lanky legs looked extra skinny and his body distorted.—
Paul Du Quenoy,
MSNBC Newsweek,
28 Mar. 2025
-
With their lanky legs and slender necks, sandhill cranes stand roughly three to four feet tall.—
Sarah Kuta,
Smithsonian Magazine,
28 Mar. 2025
Adjective
-
Only two bodies remain still: Ferran’s, in one corner of the platform, and that of a young man (Jabez Sykes) diagonally across from her, tall and willowy and pale — two statues that seem moonlit while the rest of the world writhes and sweats around them.—
Sara Holdren,
Vulture,
11 Mar. 2025
-
Michelle Troconis, the 49-year-old Venezuelan socialite who was convicted on Friday for conspiracy to commit murder, is tall, willowy, and as beautiful as a newscaster.—
Rich Cohen,
airmail.news,
2 Mar. 2024
Adjective
-
In 2016, after a reedy Canadian professor named Jordan Peterson refused to use gender-neutral pronouns, he was taken up as a folk hero, like Galileo standing firm against the Inquisition.—
Andrew Marantz,
The New Yorker,
17 Mar. 2025
-
The reedy, tree-like grass is a panda’s primary food source, especially the shoots.—
Monica Cull,
Discover Magazine,
27 Feb. 2025
Adjective
-
The Grizzlies, which entered with losses in seven of their last eight games and recently made a coaching change, are in a tight race in the Western Conference to avoid the NBA’s play-in tournament.—
Anthony Chiang,
Miami Herald,
4 Apr. 2025
-
This wood is chosen for its tight grain and natural flavor compounds, such as lignin and tannins.—
Emily Price,
Forbes.com,
4 Apr. 2025
Adjective
-
Texas Tech’s second leading scorer and Sacramento native Darrion Williams struggled against Arkansas’ rangy defense most of the night, but made a late 3-pointer to force overtime and the go-ahead layup with less than 10 seconds left to seal the win.—
Nathan Canilao,
Mercury News,
28 Mar. 2025
-
He’s got some wiry strength and power with room to fill out and add lean muscle mass to a very rangy frame.—
Scott Wheeler,
The Athletic,
25 Mar. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Shoestring.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/shoestring. Accessed 10 Apr. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share