1
as in to relax
to make less taut
the lead climber loosened the climbing rope so that the other climber could have more room to maneuver
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to release
to set free (as from slavery or confinement)
the dog ran after the squirrel after he was loosened from the post
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in to unleash
to set free (from a state of being held in check)
once he got to know us better, his inhibitions loosened a bit
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of loosen
That means Florida can loosen or tighten its vaccination requirements.
—
Michelle Marchante, Miami Herald, 4 Sep. 2025
Heavy rains came days before, which could have loosened the ground, making those mountain villages more vulnerable.
—Brittney Melton, NPR, 2 Sep. 2025
Google was also ordered to loosen its hold on search data.
—Jennifer Elias, CNBC, 2 Sep. 2025
In such a scenario, reminiscent of the ‘70s, if the Fed loosens policy prematurely, inflation could spike, leading to the painful corrective measures seen under Powell’s predecessor Paul Volcker, who hiked rates aggressively and weathered severe, double-dip recessions.
—Nick Lichtenberg, Fortune, 2 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for loosen
Michelle Marchante, Miami Herald, 4 Sep. 2025
Heavy rains came days before, which could have loosened the ground, making those mountain villages more vulnerable.
—Brittney Melton, NPR, 2 Sep. 2025
Google was also ordered to loosen its hold on search data.
—Jennifer Elias, CNBC, 2 Sep. 2025
In such a scenario, reminiscent of the ‘70s, if the Fed loosens policy prematurely, inflation could spike, leading to the painful corrective measures seen under Powell’s predecessor Paul Volcker, who hiked rates aggressively and weathered severe, double-dip recessions.
—Nick Lichtenberg, Fortune, 2 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for loosen
Recent Examples of Synonyms for loosen
Verb
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Spurs fans can now relax about that issue.—
James McNicholas,
New York Times,
8 Sep. 2025
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Plus, there’s a front porch and a second-story balcony to relax outdoors and host family and friends.—
Toni Sutton,
PEOPLE,
7 Sep. 2025
Verb
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On Tuesday, 85 scientists released a 459-page rebuttal to the DOE report, highlighting a large body of scientific literature pointing to how climate change can exacerbate droughts, floods, crop failures, and other disasters.—
Robert Schmad,
The Washington Examiner,
7 Sep. 2025
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The panel studying those cases released a report last year describing how the state child welfare agency missed warning signs and failed to protect dozens of children from dying of the illicit drug.—
Laura Bauer,
Kansas City Star,
7 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Pegula was often the first to change direction in rallies and constantly jammed Sabalenka with body serves to stop her from unleashing returns.—
Charlie Eccleshare,
New York Times,
5 Sep. 2025
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In 2022, then UK Prime Minister Liz Truss unleashed a wave of market panic with unfunded tax cuts that forced the Bank of England into emergency action after 30-year gilt yields soared by over 100 basis points.—
Lee Ying Shan,
CNBC,
3 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Alcaraz was briefly in a battle against Novak Djokovic, but eased through the third set after taking the second on a tiebreak.—
Charlie Eccleshare,
New York Times,
6 Sep. 2025
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The new rates, intended to streamline processes and compliance while easing the burden on consumers, include tax cuts on various items like apparel and footwear, and narrow down the four tax slabs introduced when GST first rolled out in 2017.—
Mayu Saini,
Sourcing Journal,
5 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Of the survivors, Superman works with Raven to find Constantine and help locate Robin, who’s on a quest to free Batman from slavery.—
Will Harris,
Entertainment Weekly,
6 Sep. 2025
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His fellow firefighters, including Gallagher —who was injured during the rescue — used extra manpower and tools to free him before he was stabilized at the scene and flown by CareFlite to the hospital, the department said.—
Shambhavi Rimal,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
5 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Others – like Boris – are liberated by it.—
David Lyman,
Cincinnati Enquirer,
4 Sep. 2025
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Secondly, and perhaps more importantly, Ozon diverges from the text in a few key places to offer a postcolonial reading of a novel that was published two decades before Algeria liberated itself from French rule.—
Jordan Mintzer,
HollywoodReporter,
2 Sep. 2025
Verb
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In more recent years, fleeting trends and other fashion antics sometimes sidetracked Armani, especially on the runway, where aviator hats or tricky pants — from bloomers to loose, low-crotch styles — won him barbs from critics.—
Luisa Zargani,
Footwear News,
4 Sep. 2025
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Harrison is also a fan of the hair screw tool that’s designed to pick up long strands of hair and loose pet fur with ease.—
Yelena Moroz Alpert,
Architectural Digest,
3 Sep. 2025
Verb
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The Florida Aquarium has 100 adult corals that were rescued from disease and then rescued from the 2023 marine heat wave.—
Julia Jacobo,
ABC News,
3 Sep. 2025
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At the time of Sunday’s disaster, the Taliban government was using helicopters to rescue those affected by the quake, as the mountainous terrain and landslides triggered by the natural disaster made providing aid challenging.—
David Chiu,
People.com,
2 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Loosen.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/loosen. Accessed 9 Sep. 2025.
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