as in dime
a very small sum of money
trying to start a business on a shoestring
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in spindly
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of shoestring
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
Hunter Ingram, Variety, 7 June 2025
In the end, the film was made on a shoestring budget of less than $2 million, most of it provided by Laokoon Filmgroup.
—Josh Weiss, Forbes.com, 15 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for shoestring
Noun
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
Adjective
But whoever cleared the song on the show’s shoestring music budget will forever have Everett’s gratitude.
—Hunter Ingram, Variety, 7 June 2025
In the end, the film was made on a shoestring budget of less than $2 million, most of it provided by Laokoon Filmgroup.
—Josh Weiss, Forbes.com, 15 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for shoestring
Recent Examples of Synonyms for shoestring
Noun
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The character is agile on-foot, able to stop on a dime and whiz in every direction.—
Christopher Cruz,
Rolling Stone,
1 July 2025
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But the rest is pure presence, dealing with a car that can stop on a dime or take a corner at 140 mph.—
Marco della Cava,
USA Today,
27 June 2025
Adjective
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Her long, spindly body operates in an anticipatory arch, her body gliding across the pitch in long, laboured strides until igniting into a blur, a combination of ferocity and grace.—
Megan Feringa,
New York Times,
6 July 2025
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Spiderwort can become spindly in deep shade or dry out in the sun, making partial sun just the spot for it in the South.—
Brandee Gruener,
Southern Living,
4 June 2025
Adjective
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While much of the physical art will comprise thread, fiber, rope, sinew and other stringy mediums, aural aspects will focus on various things that tie us together as communities and human beings.—
JOE YOGERST,
Forbes.com,
1 July 2025
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The look was an ode to Brigitte Bardot with stringy pieces dangling around her face.—
Kaleigh Werner,
Footwear News,
23 June 2025
Adjective
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Having lived in Paris with Richardson on and off since late 1921, Hemingway was a struggling writer who could be spotted scribbling in Left Bank cafés—a tall, lanky Midwesterner with unkempt hair, wearing sneakers, old trousers and a patched jacket.—
Tony Perrottet,
Smithsonian Magazine,
30 June 2025
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The Ducks selected the lanky center (6-foot-5, 198 pounds) 10th overall in the first round of the NHL draft on Friday, making the Brandon Wheat Kings pivot the 11th forward in the Ducks’ past 14 selections and their third straight top pick up front.—
Andrew Knoll,
Oc Register,
28 June 2025
Adjective
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Her willowy frame takes a tremendous battering as brutes slam her into tables and through walls.—
Amy Nicholson,
Los Angeles Times,
5 June 2025
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Just who was this willowy blond from Iowa City, Iowa?—
Gia Kourlas,
New York Times,
25 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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Liam sang most of the songs in his reedy yowl, all charisma with his hands pulled behind his back, head tilted up toward the sky and a parka often inexplicably zipped all the way up to his chin.—
Paula Mejía,
Vulture,
5 July 2025
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Alejandro Arias, an American evangelist with a reedy voice, addressed the crowd.—
Pete McKenzie,
Harpers Magazine,
18 June 2025
Adjective
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This minimizes losses from expired or unsold products and lowers risk by maintaining tighter control over merchandise.—
Expert Panel®,
Forbes.com,
9 July 2025
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The Moccamaster can hold brewing temperatures within a variance of 4 degrees Celsius and extract coffee within very tight parameters.—
Scott Gilbertson,
Wired News,
9 July 2025
Adjective
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With two right-handers due up near the bottom of the Nationals’ lefty-heavy lineup, Estrada was called first and worked a 1-2-3 eighth with help from a rangy play by Wade.—
Kevin Acee,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
25 June 2025
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His profile is suited to exploiting the space on the transition: a rangy dribbler out wide with a knack for arriving in dangerous areas to finish.—
Thom Harris,
New York Times,
19 June 2025
Cite this Entry
“Shoestring.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/shoestring. Accessed 16 Jul. 2025.
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