- [uncountable, countable] long, thin material used for tying things together, made of several threads that have been twisted together; a piece of string used to fasten or pull something or keep something in place
- a piece/length/ball of string
- He wrapped the package in brown paper and tied it with string.
- The key is hanging on a string by the door.
Extra Examples- He pulled the string tight.
- I cut a length of string to tie up the package.
- There's a knot in the string.
- Tie the string around the parcel.
- He wound the string into a ball.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective- taut
- tight
- loose
- …
- bit
- length
- piece
- …
- tie
- tie something up with
- undo
- …
- vest
- in the string
- string of
- [countable] a set or series of things that are joined together, for example on a string
- a string of pearls
- The molecules join together to form long strings.
- [countable] string of something a series of things or people that come closely one after another
- The band had a string of hits in the nineties.
- He owns a string of racing stables.
Extra Examples- There's been a whole string of accidents at that corner.
- This is the latest in a string of scandals associated with the president.
- a tennis player with a long string of successes on grass courts
- After winning a string of elections, the party suddenly went into decline.
- He had a whole string of broken relationships in his past.
- The treatment is available in a string of clinics across the country.
- The company owns a string of casinos in Nevada.
- [countable] a series of characters (= letters, numbers, etc.)
- to key in/enter a search string
- [countable] a tightly stretched piece of wire, nylon, or catgut on a musical instrument, that produces a musical note when the instrument is played
- Play it on the G string.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective- open
- guitar
- violin
- …
- tune
- loosen
- tighten
- …
- break
- vibrate
- instrument
- on a/the string
- strings[plural] the group of musical instruments in an orchestra that have strings, for example violins; the people who play them
- The opening theme is taken up by the strings.
- [countable] any of the tightly stretched pieces of nylon or natural gut in a racket, used for hitting balls in tennis and some other sportsTopics Sports: ball and racket sportsb2
- strings[plural] special conditions or limits
- Major loans like these always come with strings.
- It's a business proposition, pure and simple. No strings attached.
for tying/fastening
things joined
series
computing
musical instruments
on tennis racket
conditions
Word OriginOld English streng (noun), of Germanic origin; related to German Strang, also to strong. The verb (dating from late Middle English) is first recorded in the senses ‘arrange in a row’ and ‘fit with a string’.
Idioms
See string in the Oxford Advanced American DictionarySee string in the Oxford Learner's Dictionary of Academic English(tied to) somebody’s apron strings
- (too much under) the influence and control of somebody
- The British prime minister is too apt to cling to Washington's apron strings.
have another string/more strings to your bow
- (British English) to have more than one skill or plan that you can use if you need to
- The exhibition shows that he has other strings to his artistic bow.
how long is a piece of string?
- (British English, informal) used to say that there is no definite answer to a question
- ‘How long will it take?’ ‘How long's a piece of string?’
pull strings (for somebody)
(North American English also pull wires)
- (informal) to use your influence in order to get an advantage for somebody
pull the strings
- to control events or the actions of other people
Check pronunciation:
string