| 释义 |
▪ I. loose, n.|luːs|
Also 6 lose, lowse, 7 lewse, 8 louse.
[f. loose v. and a.]
1. Archery. The act of discharging an arrow
1519W. Horman Vulg. 283 b, Geue a smarte lose with thyn arowe and thy stryng. 1526Pilgr. Perf. (W. de W. 1531) 160 b, In the loose of the stryng..the..arowe is caryed to the marke. 1545R. Ascham Toxoph. ii. (Arb.) 146 An other I sawe whiche,..after the loose, lyfted vp his ryght legge. 1622Drayton Poly-olb. xxvi. 338 The loose gaue such a twang, as might be heard a myle. 1636B. Jonson Discov. (1641) 115 In throwing a Dart, or Iavelin, wee force back our armes, to make our loose the stronger. 1879M. & W. H. Thompson Archery iii. 22 The loose being the delicate part of archery, a very small defect in the archer's gear will materially affect the smoothness of the loose.
fig.1599Warn. Faire Wom. ii. 394 The only mark whereat foul Murther shot, Just in the loose of envious eager death,..Escap'd the arrow aim'd at his heart. 1599B. Jonson Ev. Man out of Hum. iii. iii, Her braine's a quiuer of iests, and she do's dart them abroad with that sweete loose and iudiciall aime, that [etc.]. 1703De Foe True-born Eng. Explan. Pref. 4 To allow me a Loose at the Crimes of the Guilty.
†2. The conclusion or close of a matter; upshot, issue, event. at (or in) the (very) loose: at the last moment. Obs.
1588Shakes. L.L.L. v. ii. 752 The extreme parts of time, extremelie formes All causes to the purpose of his speed: And often at the verie loose decides That, which long processe could not arbitrate. 1589Puttenham Eng. Poesie iii. xvi. (Arb.) 184 We vse to say marke the loose of a thing for marke the end of it. 1600Holland Livy x. xxxv. 376 In the verie loose and retreat, rather than in the combat and medley, they found that many more were hurt and slain of their part. Ibid. xxii. ix. 437 The late battell..was more joious and fortunat in the loose and parting, than light and easie in the conflict and fighting. 1601― Pliny II. 403 A smacke it [a fountain] hath resembling the rust of yron, howbeit this tast is not perceiued but at the end and loose only. 1608Bp. Hall Epistles i. iii, How all godless plots, in their loose, have at once deceived, shamed, punished their author. 1612Bacon Ess., Cunning (Arb.) 442 You shall see them finde out pretty looses in the conclusion, but are no waies able to examine or debate matters. 1647Sanderson Serm. II. 209 The unjust steward..resolveth..to shew his master a trick at the loose, that should make amends for all, and do his whole business.
†3. A state or condition of looseness, laxity, or unrestraint; hence, free indulgence; unrestrained action or feeling; abandonment. Chiefly in phr. at (a or the) loose: in a state of laxity or freedom; unrestrained, unbridled, lax. to take a loose: to give oneself up to indulgence. Obs. exc. as in b.
1593‘P. Foulface’ Bacchus Bountie C, After these came young Cicero, who, for the large loose that he had in turning downe his liquor, was called Bicongius. a1626W. Sclater 2 Thess. (1629) 86 Saint Paul stickes not to impute demencie to seduced Galathians... In his loose, imputes no lesse then..madnesse or losse of wits vnto them. 1646Sir T. Browne Pseud. Ep. v. v. 240 Although they act them⁓selves at distance, and seem to be at loose; yet doe they hold a continuity with their Maker. 1657Burton's Diary (1828) II. 43, I would have you as careful in penning the clause as may be, but not wholly to leave these things at a loose. 1703Rowe Fair Penit. i. i, Melts in his Arms, and with a loose she loves. 1703C. Leslie in S. Parker Eusebius' 10 Bks. Eccl. Hist. p. xvi, From all this, that dreadful Loose has proceeded of Prophaneness,..which we now see before our Eyes. 1706M. Astell Refl. Marriage 13 The Man takes a loose: what shou'd hinder him? a1734North Lives (1826) III. 75 Such looses and escapes as almost all men there [in Turkey] are more or less guilty of. 1760–72H. Brooke Fool of Qual. (1809) IV. 24 In the midst of all his enjoyments, of a loose to the gratification of every sensual desire.
b. to give a loose (occas. give loose) to: to allow (a person) unrestrained freedom or laxity; to give full vent to (feelings, etc.); to free from restraint. occas. To give (a horse) the rein.
1685Dryden Horace's Ode i. xxix. 21 Come, give thy Soul a loose, and taste the pleasures of the poor. 1709Steele Tatler No. 8 ⁋6 They now give a Loose to their Moan. 1712Addison Spect. No. 327 ⁋11 The Poets have given a loose to their Imaginations in the Description of Angels. 1735Somerville Chase iii. 84 Now give a Loose to the clean gen'rous Steed. 1752Fielding Amelia iv. ix, Amelia's inclinations, when she gave a loose to them, were pretty eager for this diversion. 1770Burke Pres. Discont. Sel. Wks. 1897 I. 72 They gave themselves..a full loose for all manner of dissipation. 1823Scott Quentin D. xxviii, He..gave loose..to agitation, which, in public, he had found himself able to suppress so successfully. 1858Thackeray Virgin. (1879) I. 391 The little boy..gave a loose to his innocent tongue, and asked many questions. 1876Bancroft Hist. U.S. VI. xxxviii. 195 Were I to indulge my present feelings, and give loose to that freedom of expression which [etc.].
†4. The act of letting go or parting with something. Phrase, a cheerful loose. Obs.
1615S. Ward Coal from Altar 28 Without zeale the widowes mites are no better then the rest; It is the cheerefull loose [ed. 1627 lose], that doubleth the gift. 1667J. Howard All Mistaken iii. (1672) 33 Ping. I must run with my Breeches in My hand, my Purge visits My Bumgut so intollerable often. Doct. Now Sir for a Cheerful Loose.
†5. The action of getting free, the fact of being set free, liberation, release. to make a loose from: to get away from the company of. Obs.
1663Dryden Wild Gallant i. ii, I must make a loose from her, there's no other way. 1672― Marr. à la Mode ii. i, I was just making a loose from Doralice, to pay my respects to you. a1734North Lives (1826) II. 177 After his first loose from the university, where the new philosophy was then but just entering.
†6. An impetuous course or rush. Obs.
1700Prior Carmen Sec. 217 The fiery Pegasus..runs with an unbounded loose. 1735Somerville Chase iii. 150 Hah! yet he flies, nor yields To black Despair. But one Loose more, and all His Wiles are vain. 1737Bracken Farriery Impr. (1757) II. 148 It is running a Horse in Looses or in Pushes that makes the Sweat come out best.
7. Comb.: † loose-giving.
1567J. Maplet Gr. Forest 52 b, Isidore saith that the best of it [myrrh] cummeth by resolution and loose-giving within it-selfe. [Isid. Etym. xvii. viii. 4 Gutta ejus sponte manans pretiosior est.]
▪ II. loose, a. and adv.|luːs|
Forms: 3 (in definite form), 5–7 lousse, (also 8–9 dial.) lowse, (4 loss), 4–5 lause, loos, 4, 6 lose, 4–7 lous, 4–8 louse, 5 lawse, 5–6 lewse, loce, 6 Sc. lowis, lowsz, 7 lowsse, 5– loose.
[ME. lōs (with close ō), in north. dial. lous, a. ON. lǫus-s, laus-s (Sw. lös, Da. løs), = OE. léas lease a., q.v. for the ulterior etymology.]
A. adj.
1. Unbound, unattached.
For to break loose, cast loose, cut loose, let loose, shake loose, turn loose, etc., see the verbs.
a. Of living beings or their limbs: Free from bonds, fetters, or physical restraint. Now used only in implied contrast with a previous, usual, or desirable state of confinement. spec. of horses etc.: allowed to run free in travelling or marching. Of money, cash, etc.: in relatively small denominations; in coins (as opp. to notes). So loose change (orig. U.S.), a quantity of coins kept or left in one's pocket, etc., for casual use.
a1300Cursor M. 13333 Quat man þat þou lesess o band, For lous [Fairf. lause, Trin. louse] he sal in heuen stand. 1303R. Brunne Handl. Synne 10581 So fast þey neuer hym bonde, Þat lose a noþer tyme þey hym fonde. c1375Sc. Leg. Saints xxix. (Placidas) 976 Þe emperoure..commandit his men..to..bynd þame in a place..& lyons loss lat to þaim ga. c1386Chaucer Reeve's T. 218 This Millere..boond hire hors, it sholde nat goon loos. ― Cook's Prol. 28 For in thy shoppe is many a flye loos. c1400Destr. Troy 13190 He deliuert me lowse, & my lefe felow. 1526Tindale Matt. xxvii. 17 Whether wyll ye that y geve losse vnto you [cf. Luther: welchen soll ich euch los geben?] barrabas or Iesus? 1590Spenser F.Q. iii. x. 36 The gentle Lady, loose at randon lefte. 1598Shakes. Merry W. i. i. 304 You are afraid if you see the Beare loose, are you not? 1608Burgh Rec. Glasgow (1876) I. 285 That na maner of swyne be hadin lows within this bruche or burrow ruidis. 1672Dryden Conq. Granada i. i, When fierce Bulls run loose upon the Place. 1794Cowper Faithf. Bird 8 They sang as blithe as finches sing That flutter loose on golden wing. 1811Jane Austen Sense & Sens. I. xvii. 217 My loose cash would..be employed in improving my collection of music and books. 1827A. Sherwood Gazetteer Georgia 112 It would be a kind of generous charity, to leave with the tavern-keepers..some of the loose change. 1843Oregon Hist. Soc. Q. (1901) II. 191 About fifty wagons, with those who had large droves of loose cattle, now left. 1845J. C. Frémont Rep. Exploring Expedition 10 A few loose horses, and four oxen..completed the train. 1846W. G. D. Stewart Altowan II. i. 41 The neighing of the loose troops, that ever and anon, broke forward to snatch the opportunity of browsing ere the crowd advanced. 1872E. Eggleston End of World 173 Unless he means to part with all his loose change. 1882Ouida Maremma I. 41 A fine long time he [a bandit] has been loose on these hills. 1885Outing VII. 21/2 All drove pack and loose animals before them. 1895A. Machen Three Imposters 81 He never returned, but his watch and chain, a purse containing three sovereigns in gold, and some loose silver, with a ring..were found three days later. 1900Speaker 29 Dec. 340/2 Loose horses, blankets, bags and helmets littering the road. a1903Mod. He struggled until he got one hand loose. 1927C. A. Siringo Riata & Spurs v. 54 That little burg saw the need of saloons and dance-halls to relieve the cowboy of his loose change. 1950Wilkinson & Frisby They're Open ii. 19 Capacious left-hand pocket,..in order that a large bulk of loose change may be carried. 1970G. F. Newman Sir, You Bastard viii. 245 He got rid of the loose change in his pocket. 1973Woman's Own 4 Aug. 36 (Advt.), The clip-to coin section is just the right size for all your loose change.
b. transf. and fig., e.g. of something compared to a wild animal. Also of the tongue: Not ‘tied’, free to speak. † to have one's feet loose: to be at liberty to travel (cf. loose-footed 10 d fig.).
1726Wodrow Corr. (1843) III. 239 To recover this,..were my feet loose, and my health served me, I would willingly make a London journey. 1781Cowper Conversat. 354 We sometimes think we could such speech produce Much to the purpose, if our tongues were loose. 1817Shelley To W. Shelley i. 7 The winds are loose, we must not stay. 1879B. Taylor Stud. Germ. Lit. 115 Then swords are drawn, and murder is loose.
c. In immaterial sense: Freed from an engagement, obligation, etc.; at liberty. Obs. exc. dial., e.g. in the sense ‘free from apprenticeship, having completed a term of service’ (E.D.D. s.v. Lowse).
1553T. Wilson Rhet. (1580) 59 The seruitude of these twoo, where the one is so muche beholding and bounde to the other, that neither of them bothe would be lose though thei might. a1600Montgomerie Misc. Poems xxi. 27 Quhen I wes lous, at libertie I lap; I leugh vhen ladyis spak to me of love. 1608Rowlands Humors Looking Gl. 14 My friend seeing what humours haunt a wife, If he were loose would lead a single life. 1880Antrim & Down Gloss., Loose, unoccupied. ‘I want to see the mistress when she's loose’.
†d. With prep.: Free from or of; released or disengaged from; unattached to. Obs.
c1374Chaucer Boeth. iv. pr. vi. 106 (Camb. MS.) In so moche is the thing moore fre and laus fro destinye as it..holdeth hym nere to thilke centre of thinges. c1400Destr. Troy 10996 Philmen the fre kyng, þat he in fyst hade, He lete to þe large, lause of his hondes. 1456Sir G. Haye Law Arms (S.T.S.) 249 [He] is lousse of his promess. 1526Pilgr. Perf. (W. de W. 1531) 28 Hauyng thy herte lose from all worldly pleasure. a1677Barrow Serm. Wks. 1716 III. 179 To suppose that a Gentleman is loose from Business is a great mistake. 1695Addison Sir J. Somers Misc. Wks. 1726 I. 5 If yet your thoughts are loose from State Affairs. 1713Berkeley Guardian No. 3 ⁋1 After getting loose of the laws which confine the passions of other men. 1761Churchill Rosciad Poems 1763 I. 51 Loose to Fame, the muse more simply acts. 1784Cowper Task v. 512 Her champions wear their hearts So loose to private duty, that [etc.]. 1821Scott Pirate xxxvi, I wish we were loose from him [sc. the pirate captor].
†e. Loosely clad; ungirt; naked. Obs.
1423Jas. I Kingis Q. xlix, Halflyng louse for haste. 1555Eden Decades 56 They are excedynge swyfte of foote by reason of theyr loose goinge from theyr chyldes age. 1709Prior Pallas & Venus 3 Venus, loose in all her naked Charms.
f. Of an inanimate thing: Not fastened or attached to that to which it belongs as a part or appendage, or with which it has previously been connected; detached. Phr. to come, get loose.
a1728Woodward Nat. Hist. Fossils (1729) I. ii. 39 [A fossil] found loose on the Side of a pretty high Hill near Stokesley. 1833J. Holland Manuf. Metal II. 276 These bolts may be..withdrawn, either by means of a loose key or a stationary handle on the outside of the door. 1856Kane Arct. Expl. II. xxiii. 233, I remember once a sledge went so far under..that the boat floated loose. Mod. Some of the pages have come loose. It would be more convenient if the volume had a loose index.
g. Not joined to anything else. Of a chemical element: Free, uncombined.
1828Hutton Course Math. II. 75 When a loose line is measured, it becomes absolutely necessary to measure some other line that will determine its position. 1873C. H. Ralfe Phys. Chem. 178 Carbonic acid is present in the blood in two conditions; viz., loose and stable.
h. Having an end or ends hanging free. Also in fig. context. (See also loose end.)
1781Cowper Anti-Thelyphthora 102 The marriage bond has lost its power to bind, And flutters loose, the sport of every wind. 1820Shelley Sensit. Plant iii. 68 Like a murderer's stake, Where rags of loose flesh yet tremble on high. 1870J. H. Newman Gram. Assent ii. viii. 277 As to Logic, its chain of conclusions hangs loose at both ends.
i. Not bound together; not forming a bundle or package; not tied up or secured.
1488Inv. R. Wardrobes (1815) 4 Fund in the maist of the said cofferis lous & put in na thing bot liand within the said coffyr[is] 570 rois nobilis. 1596Spenser Prothalamion 22 With goodly greenish locks, all loose untyde. 1597Shakes. Lover's Compl. 29 Her haire nor loose nor ti'd in formall plat. 1634Sir T. Herbert Trav. 159 Who compiled the Alcoran out of Mahomets loose paper. 1668Dryden Dram. Poesie Ep. Ded., As I was lately reviewing my loose papers, amongst the rest I found this Essay. 1781Cowper Charity 176 Loose fly his forelock and his ample mane. 1818Shelley Rosalind & Helen 7 Thy loose hair in the light wind flying. 1840Browning Sordello ii. 194 This calm corpse with the loose flowers in his hand. 1850Hannay Singleton Fontenoy I. i. vi. 97 Jingling the loose cash in their pockets. 1888F. Hume Mad. Midas i. ii, Slivers had pushed all the scrip and loose papers away.
j. In immaterial sense: Unconnected; rambling; disconnected, detached, stray, random. ? Now rare.
1681Dryden Span. Friar Ep. Ded. A 2 b, I..am as much asham'd to put a loose indigested Play upon the Publick. 1705Stanhope Paraphr. II. 256 These would check all our loose Wanderings. 1710Steele Tatler No. 215 ⁋2 These are but loose Hints of the Disturbances in humane Society, of which there is yet no Remedy. 1739Hume Hum. Nature i. iv. (1874) I. 319 Were ideas entirely loose and unconnected, chance alone wou'd join them. 1741Watts Improv. Mind i. xvii. Wks. 1753 V. 279 Vario will spend whole mornings in running over loose and unconnected pages. 1783Burke Rep. Affairs India Wks. XI. 307 He gives various loose conjectures concerning the motive to them. 1871Carlyle in Mrs. Carlyle's Lett. I. 247 Some real scholarship, a good deal of loose information.
k. Free for disposal; unattached, unappropriated, unoccupied. Obs. exc. in some jocular expressions. † loose shot: marksmen not attached to a company. loose card (see quot. 17631).
1479Bury Wills (Camden) 51, I will that the seid priste be founde the residue of the seid vij yeers wt my loose godes. Ibid. 52 My executors pesably to ocupye my loose goodes. 1590Sir J. Smyth Disc. Conc. Weapons 17 Mosquettiers..are not to be imployed as loose shot in skirmishes. 1613Shakes. Hen. VIII, v. iv. 59 A File of Boyes,..loose shot. 1633T. Stafford Pac. Hib. ii. xxi. (1810) 418 The Enemy thereupon put out some of their loose Shot from their battle, and entertayned the fight. 1759Hume Hist. Eng. (1806) III. 798 Such as could render themselves agreeable to him in his loose hours. 1763Hoyle Whist 82 Loose Card, Means a Card in a Hand that is of no Value, and consequently the properest to throw away. 1763Johnson Let. to G. Strahan 16 Apr. in Boswell, I hope you read..at loose hours, other books. 1821Shelley Prometh. Unb. iv. 154 In the void's loose field. 1839I. Taylor Ancient Chr. I. iv. 465 A devout and wealthy layman resolves to spend a loose five and twenty thousand pounds on sacred architecture. 1900Daily News 30 Mar. 3/3 With a handful of hastily levied farmers,..aided by the ‘loose talent’ of Europe.
l. Gram. Of certain syntactical elements: not essential to the meaning or construction, etc.
1932E. Kruisinga Handbk. Present Day Eng. (ed. 5) II. iii. 235 The members of a loose group may be connected by other words or not... We distinguish linked groups and unlinked groups. 1933O. Jespersen Essent. Eng. Gram. xxxiv. 357 A non-restrictive (or loose) clause,..may be left out without injury to the precise meaning of the word it is joined to, as in ‘The Prince of Wales, who happened to be there, felt sorry for the prisoners.’ 1961R. B. Long Sentence & its Parts iii. 68 They [sc. subordinate interrogatives] function also as loose adjuncts... We went with Larry, who knew everyone. 1972Hartmann & Stork Dict. Lang. & Ling. 135 Loose apposition, a word or phrase used in apposition and often separated by sustained juncture in speech or by commas in writing.
2. a. Not rigidly or securely attached or fixed in place; ready to move in or come apart from the body to which it is joined or on which it rests.
For loose in the haft, in the hilt(s, to have a screw or a tile loose, a loose pin, slate, see the ns.
a1225Ancr. R. 228 Heo bið ikest sone adun, ase þe leste [MS. T. lowse, MS. C. lousse] ston is from þe tures coppe. c1380Wyclif Serm. Sel. Wks. I. 70 Þei wolen be louse in us as nailes in a tree. 1479Inv. in Paston Lett. III. 273, j. candilstykke with a lous sokett. 1530Palsgr. 700/2, I shake, as a tothe in ones heed that is lose. a1548Hall Chron., Hen. VIII 58 Spangels..set on Crymosyn satten lose and not fastened. 1568Grafton Chron. I. 27 Moses..whose eyes were never dimme, nor his Teeth loose. 1613Shakes. Hen. VIII, iv. i. 75 Hats, Cloakes..flew vp, and had their Faces Bin loose, this day they had beene lost. 1669Sturmy Mariner's Mag. i. 19 We are within shot; let all our Guns be loose. 1724De Foe Mem. Cavalier (1840) 97 His bridge was only loose planks. 1784Cowper Task i. 194 Rills..chiming as they fall Upon loose pebbles. 1839Ure Dict. Arts 1074 The said sheaves or pulleys are connected by a crown or centre wheel D, loose upon b, b. 1842C. Hodge Way of Life iii. ii. 78 Loose matter flies off from revolving bodies. 1860Tyndall Glac. ii. xi. 292, I sent Simond to the top to remove the looser stones.
b. Of dye: Not fast, fugitive.
1844G. Dodd Textile Manuf. II. 72 A ‘loose’ colour..easily washed out from those parts.
†c. Of the eyes: Not fixed, roving. Obs.
1603Dekker Grissil (Shaks. Soc.) 7 Their loose eyes tell That in their bosoms wantonness doth dwell. 1751H. Walpole Lett. (1846) II. 381 Prince Edward is a very plain boy, with strange loose eyes.
d. Of a cough: Producing expectoration with little difficulty; not ‘fast’ or ‘tight’.
1833Cycl. Pract. Med. I. 316/2 Tightness across the chest, which yields as the cough becomes loose.
3. a. Of strings, reins, the skin, etc.: Not tightly drawn or stretched; slack, relaxed. with a loose rein (fig.): slackly, indulgently, without rigour.
c1460J. Russell Bk. Nurture 907 His gurdelle..be it strayt or lewse. 1553Eden Treat. Newe Ind. (Arb.) 37 Neyther haue they theyr bellies wrimpeled or loose. 1565Cooper Thesaurus s.v. Laxus, Funes laxi,..Cordes lewse or vnbounde. 1634Milton Comus 292 What time the labour'd Oxe In his loose traces from the furrow came. 1718Jacob Compl. Sportsman 50 His [sc. a Greyhound's] Neck long,..with a loose and hanging Weasan. 1775Burke Sp. Conc. Amer. Sel. Wks. 1897 I. 184 The Sultan..governs with a loose rein, that he may govern at all. 1799M. Underwood Dis. Children (ed. 4) II. 61 Some such application as the following will soon brace the loose gums. 1819Shelley Cenci iv. iii. 17 My knife Touched the loose wrinkled throat. 1908Animal Managem. 17 The skin..when handled, should feel ‘loose’ and freely movable over the structures beneath.
b. Of clothes: Not clinging close to the figure; loosely-fitting.
1463Extracts Aberd. Reg. (1844) I. 24 The saide Dauy sall cum bar fute, with his gowne louse. 1596Shakes. 1 Hen. IV, iii. iii. 4 My skinne hangs about me like an olde Ladies loose Gowne. 1606Holland Sueton. 147 Veiled all over in a loose mantle of fine Sendall. 1680Otway Orphan ii. iv, Thy garments flowing loose. 1727–46Thomson Summer 1291 Rob'd in loose array, she came to bathe Her fervent limbs. 1859W. J. Hoge Blind Bartimeus vi. 115 Bartimeus..‘cast away his garment’, his loose upper robe. 1901Speaker 17 Aug. 548/1 Men in loose flannel jackets sang old songs.
fig.1605Shakes. Macb. v. ii. 21 Now do's he feele his Title Hang loose about him, like a Giants Robe Vpon a dwarfish Theefe.
c. Of the joints: Slack, relaxed from weakness. Also, of a person's ‘build’: Ungainly, looking unsuited for brisk movement.
1848Dickens Dombey ii, He was a strong, loose, round-shouldered, shuffling shaggy fellow, on whom his clothes sat negligently. 1893Stevenson Catriona 66 My eyes besides were still troubled, and my knees loose under me.
d. Of persons, etc.: relaxed or easy, calm; uninhibited. Esp. predic. (quasi-adv.) in phr. to hang (or stay) loose. slang (orig. U.S.).
1968R. Coover Universal Baseball Assoc. viii. 242 ‘Hang loose,’ he says, and pulling down his mask, trots back behind home plate. 1968–70Current Slang (Univ. S. Dakota) III–IV. 40 Down loose, opposite of uptight.—College students, both sexes, Minnesota. 1970S. Bellow Mr Sammler's Planet iv. 161 Daddy had a bad thing about me, made me financially too independent. You know—pampered me and let me hang too loose. 1974L. Deighton Spy Story xviii. 195 This is the Captain. Stay loose, everybody. It's just their E.C.M. 1977C. McFadden Serial (1978) iv. 14/2 ‘And remember,’ he told him, waving, ‘stay loose’. 1977Zigzag Mar. 12/3 The owners were like alcoholics, but they were nice people..loose. 1982W. Safire in N.Y. Times Mag. 28 Nov. 16 The sympathetic farewell is undiminished: Hang in there vies with Hang tough and Hang loose, and Walk light may cheer up the overweight.
4. Not close or compact in arrangement or structure.
a. gen. Used e.g. of earth or soil: Having the particles free to move among themselves. Of a fabric or tissue or its texture: Having spaces between the threads.
c1374Chaucer Boeth. ii. metr. iv. 30 (Camb. MS.) The lavse [ed. 1532 lose] sandes refusen to beren the heuy wyhte. 1577B. Googe Heresbach's Husb. (1586) 44 You must beware, that whyle the ground is loose and soft, you let not in the water. 1592Shakes. Rom. & Jul. v. iii. 6 So shall no foot vpon the Churchyard tread, Being loose, vnfirme with digging vp of Graues. 1603Owen Pembrokeshire (1891) 73 This Marle..is to be cast on baren lowse and drie land. 1626Bacon Sylva §34 The Ashes with Aire between, lie looser; and with Water, closer. 1726Leoni Alberti's Archit. I. 40/1 A loose soft Mud. 1822–34Good's Study Med. (ed. 4) IV. 50 A current of blood superfluous in quantity but loose and unelaborate in crasis. 1846J. Baxter Libr. Pract. Agric. (ed. 4) II. 38 It is a common custom to lay a quantity of loose earth of some kind over the yard.
b. Of array or order of men: Not dense or serried.
1630R. Johnson's Kingd. & Commw. ii. 218 In their marches in loose troopes, they are billeted in the next houses at the countries charges. 1667Milton P.L. ii. 887 With Horse and Chariots rankt in loose array. 1697Dryden Virg. Georg. ii. 374 Extend thy loose Battalions largely wide. 1744Ozell tr. Brantome's Sp. Rhodomontades 193 They began to break their Order, and retir'd in a very loose Manner. 1777Robertson Hist. Amer. v. Wks. 1813 II. 122 They repelled, with little danger, the loose assault of the Mexicans. 1818Shelley Rev. Islam vi. vii, The loose array Of horsemen o'er the wide fields murdering sweep.
c. Bot. = lax a. 3 b. Also (see quots. 1814–30 and 1839).
1776J. Lee Introd. Bot. Explan. Terms 78 Laxus, loose, easily bent. 1776–96Withering Brit. Plants (ed. 3) IV. 290 Gills loose. 1787tr. Linnæus' Fam. Plants I. 63 The leaflets longer than the floret, loose, permanent. 1814–30Edinb. Encycl. IV. 40/2 Leaves..Loose, (solutum) a cylindrical or subulate leaf, which is loosely attached to its stem. 1839Lindley Introd. Bot. (ed. 3) 472 Loose (laxus); of a soft cellular texture, as the pith of most plants. Ibid. 492 Loose (laxus); when the parts are distant from each other, with an open light kind of arrangement; as the panicle among the other kinds of inflorescence.
d. Occurring in book-names of certain plants of a straggling habit (see quots.).
1837Macgillivray Withering's Brit. Plants (ed. 4) 71 Loose Panick-grass. 1861Miss Pratt Flower. Pl. VI. 38 Loose Pendulous Sedge.
e. Of handwriting: Not compact, straggling.
1711Hearne Collect. (O.H.S.) III. 105 [A transcript] wch is written in a pretty large and loose Hand. 1866Skeat Melusine (E.E.T.S.) Pref. (init.), It is written..in a clear but somewhat loose handwriting.
f. Applied to exercise or play in which those engaged are not close together or in which there is free movement of some kind. (See also quots. 1897 and cf. B. 2.)
1802C. James Milit. Dict., s.v. Loosen, The lock step was introduced for the purpose of counteracting the mischievous effects of loose marching. 1833Regul. Instr. Cavalry i. 146 The loose play, or independent practice, should first be attempted at a walk. 1897Encycl. Sport I. 253/2 Loose croquet, the striking of the player's ball when both are set together, without putting one's foot upon it. Ibid. 144/2 (Broadsword), Loose play, a contest in which the combatants deliver strokes and effect parries, not in any regular sequence, but as they think each may be most effective. 1899Shearman in Football (Badm. Libr.) 195 The real feature of the loose game..was the additional importance it gave to the three-quarter back.
5. a. Wanting in retentiveness or power of restraint.
1390Gower Conf. I. 131 His lose tunge he mot restreigne. 1604Shakes. Oth. iii. iii. 416 There are a kinde of men, So loose of Soule, that in their sleepes will mutter Their Affayres. 1613― Hen. VIII, ii. i. 127 Where you are liberall of your loues and Councels, Be sure you be not loose. 1865Carlyle Fredk. Gt. vii. iv. (1872) II. 283 A rash young fool; carries a loose tongue.
b. Of the bowels: Relaxed. Also said of the person.
1508Kennedy Flyting w. Dunbar 484 A rottyn crok, louse of the dok. 1594J. Dickenson Arisbas (1878) 56 The brats of Usurers should be alwaies siche of the loose disease, neuer able to holde anything long. 1671H. M. tr. Erasm. Colloq. 9, I have more need to stay it's looseness, for my belly is too loose. 1707Floyer Physic. Pulse-Watch xxi. (1710) 154 To keep the Body loose is very beneficial, but much Purging..is very injurious. 1783J. C. Smyth in Med. Commun. I. 202 It..gave her two loose stools. 1879J. M. Duncan Dis. Wom. xiv. (1889) 95 The patient tells you that her bowels are always either very constipated or very loose—implying by looseness rather frequency of motions than thinness or liquidity of the stools.
6. a. Of qualities, actions, statements, ideas, etc.: Not rigid, strict, correct, or careful; marked by inaccurate or careless thought or speech; hence, inexact, indefinite, indeterminate, vague.
1606Shakes. Tr. & Cr. iii. iii. 41 Lay negligent and loose regard vpon him. 1622Bacon Holy War Misc. Wks. (1629) 114 It is but a loose Thing to speake of Possibilities, without the Particular Designes. 1649Milton Eikon. Pref., The loose and negligent curiosity of those who took upon them to adorn this Booke. 1651Hobbes Leviath. iii. xxxvi. 226 Prophets..at Delphi..of whose loose words a sense might be made to fit any event. 1711Steele Spect. No. 188 ⁋1 It is an Argument of a loose and ungoverned Mind to be affected with the promiscuous Approbation of the Generality of Mankind. 1752Hume Pol. Disc. x. 216 No attention ought ever to be given to such loose, exaggerated calculations. 1790Paley Horæ Paul. i. 3 We have only loose tradition and reports to go by. 1839I. Taylor Anc. Chr. I. iii. 173 Not merely a loose resemblance but a close analogy. 1844Lingard Anglo-Sax. Ch. (1858) I. App. A. 317 The loose and indefinite word interea, or in the meanwhile. 1895R. L. Douglas in Bookman Oct. 23/1 His style is..free from that loose rhetoric which is so wearisome to the reader who loves history for its own sake.
b. Of literary productions, style, etc.
1638Baker tr. Balzac's Lett. (vol. III.) 31 This kind of writing is rather a loose poetry, than a regular Prose. 1687Miege Gt. Fr. Dict. II, A loose Discourse, that does not hang together, discours qui n'est pas bien lié. 1709Felton Classics (1718) 173 That Loose and Libertine Way of Paraphrasing. 1754Gray Poesy 61 Loose numbers wildly sweet. 1872W. Minto Eng. Prose Lit. Introd. 6 A sentence so constructed as to be noticeably loose. 1884Church Bacon ix. 215 Nothing can be more loose than the structure of the essays.
c. Qualifying an agent-noun.
a1568R. Ascham Scholem. (Arb.) 116 Colde, lowse, and rough writers. 1847L. Hunt Men, Women & B. II. i. 3 Lady Dorset was accounted a loose speaker. 1865Lightfoot Galatians (1874) 120 No stress can be laid on the casual statement of a writer so loose and so ignorant of Greek. 1875Whitney Life Lang. ii. 29 We are loose thinkers and loose talkers. 1902Blackw. Mag. May 590/2 Here too are traps for the loose rider.
†d. Of conditions, undertakings, or engagements: Lacking security, unsettled. Obs.
1603Contn. Adv. Don Sebastian in Harl. Misc. (1810) V. 468, I hold it no policy to deliver it [a letter] her; considering it as a loose adventure, in such dangers, to trust a woman. 1645Rutherford Tryal & Tri. Faith (1845) 80 We make loose bargains in the behalf of our Souls. 1687Miege Gt. Fr. Dict. II, To be in a loose (or unsettled) Condition, n'avoir point d' Etablissement.
e. Cricket. Of bowling: Wanting in accuracy of pitch. Of fielding, etc.: Careless, slack.
1859All Year Round No. 13. 306 The loose balls we hit for fours and fives; the good ones we put away for singles. 1877Box Eng. Game Cricket 454 Loose, this adjective is frequently applied to batting, bowling, and fielding too. 1884Lillywhite's Cricket Ann. 103 P. M. Lucas punishes loose bowling severely.
f. colloq. Of an appointed time: Not strictly adhered to.
1892Sir H. Maxwell Meridiana 45 Breakfast is not on the table till a loose ten.
7. Of persons, their habits, writings, etc.: Free from moral restraint; lax in principle, conduct, or speech; chiefly in narrower sense, unchaste, wanton, dissolute, immoral.
c1470Henryson Mor. Fab. iii. (Cock & Fox) xx, He was sa lous, and sa lecherous. a1578Lindesay (Pitscottie) Chron. Scot. (S.T.S.) I. 197 He had ane lous man with him in his companie callit Makgregour quhilk he suspectit gif ony thing war in missing it wald be found of tymes throw his handis. 1588Greene Perimedes 43 By being lose in my loues,..to disparage mine honour. 1588Shakes. L.L.L. v. ii. 776. 1591 Percivall Sp. Dict., Amancebado,..a loose liuer. 1650Baxter Saints' R. i. vii. (1662) 104 Now every old companion and every loose-fellow is putting up the finger. 1660Pepys Diary 9 Oct., I find him to be a merry fellow and pretty good natured, and sings very loose songs. 1683Tryon Way to Health xix. (1697) 428 The Spermatick Vessels, whence proceed wanton Desires, and loose Imaginations. 1700Dryden Pref. Fables Wks. (Globe) 502, I am sensible..of the scandal I have given by my loose writings. 1722De Foe Col. Jack (1840) 170 He had led a loose life. a1770Jortin Serm. (1771) IV. i. 5 The Pagans though loose enough in other points of duty. 1784Cowper Task ii. 378 Loose in morals, and in manners vain. 1849Macaulay Hist. Eng. vi. II. 118 He was a loose and profane man. 1879F. W. Farrar St. Paul (1883) 675 The leading hierarchs resembled the loosest of the Avignon cardinals.
8. Applied to a stable in which animals are kept ‘loose’ (sense 1 a) or without being fastened up. So also loose box (see box n.2 12).
1813Sporting Mag. XLII. 54 The reader will have noticed my frequent warm recommendations of the loose stable. 1833Loudon Encycl. Cottage Archit. §1091 The stables, loose⁓house (stable or place for a sick horse..&c.),..to be neatly causewayed. 1839Greenwood Hints Horsemanship (1861) 128 A horse should have a loose standing if possible; if he must be tied in a stall it should be flat. 1849Thackeray Pendennis lxxv, Gentlemen hunting with the..hounds will find excellent Stabling and loose boxes for horses at the ‘Clavering Arms’. 1871M. Collins Mrq. & Merch. I. ii. 89 Loose boxes for no end of horses.
9. In certain specialized collocations: loose back, a method of binding the spine of a book to make it open more easily; loose body Med. = joint mouse (joint n. 15); usu. pl.; loose coupling Electr. (see coupling vbl. n. 6 f (i)); loose cover, a detachable cover for a chair, couch, or car seat; also attrib.; loose fall Whaling (see fall n.3); loose-fill, loose fill, a type of house insulation (see quot. 1964); also attrib.; loose fish, (a) colloq. a person of irregular habits; † (b) a common prostitute; (c) (see quot. 1864); (d) Whaling (see quot. 1883); † loose hand = loose end, in phr. at the loose hand; loose head, see head n.1 26 c; loose-housing, a method of housing cattle in winter in partly covered barns with access to a feeding area, in which the cows are not confined to a single stall; also attrib.; hence loose-housed a.; loose ice (see quot. 1835); loose pulley, ‘a pulley running loosely on the shaft, and receiving the belt from the fast pulley when the shaft is to be disconnected from the motor’ (Knight Dict. Mech.); also fast and loose pulley (see fast a. 11); loose scrummage, loose scrum, in Rugby Football, a scrum formed by the players round the ball during play, and not ordered by the referee: opp. set scrum(mage); hence, loose scrummaging; loose smut, a disease of cereals, esp. barley and wheat, caused by the fungus Ustilago nuda; loose whale, a whale which remains beside its harpooned mate; † loose work, a kind of embroidery in which certain parts (e.g. those representing leaves of trees) are left free to move.
1923H. A. Maddox Dict. Stationery 46 *Loose back, also termed open or spring back. Ibid. 47 A loose back may be created by simply casing the book... The spring or loose back is actually bound into the book. 1956Bookman's Conc. Dict. 277 Spring Back, an inner joint in a bookbinding which allows the book to open flat; known as Hollow or Loose Back. 1961T. Landau Encycl. Librarianship (ed. 2) 268/2 Open back, a style of construction in which the cover is separated from the spine of the book by a special lining... Also called Hollow and Loose Back.
1886H. Marsh Dis. Joints xv. 185 On examining his joint when the acute attack has gone off, the patient detects the *loose body, and learns that it shifts its position. Ibid. 183 (caption) Specimens of the loose bodies found in the knee joint in Mr. Smith's case. 1952[see joint mouse s.v. joint n. 15]. 1961R. D. Baker Essent. Path. xxi. 578 Portions of the damaged articular cartilage, or fragments of the thickened peripheral bone, break off and become loose bodies in the joint cavities.
1876M. W. Cook Tables & Chairs i. 52 You may prefer to have your curtains, as well as the *loose covers, of chintz. Ibid. 56 Nothing now-a-days looks so nice and ladylike, or is so economical as well-fitting loose covers. 1911F. B. Jack Woman's Bk. 613/2 Loose covers are not much used nowadays, and, at the best, they soon get out of order and become shabby looking. 1929Radio Times 8 Nov. 438/1 Odd Jobs about the House—II, A Few Hints on Loose Cover Cutting. 1936R. Lehmann Weather in Streets i. v. 104, I might keep her on for the sewing. She's very clever at loose covers. 1953M. Sheridan Furnisher's Encycl. ix. iii. 414 A loose cover service may substantially increase the furnisher's business. 1959B.S.I. News Nov. 20 Specifies..maximum foreign matter content for..loose cover cloths made from cotton. 1973A. Broinowski Take One Ambassador xii. 206 Comfortable upholstery, not bottomlessly soft, with well-cut linen loose covers.
[1949Building Digest IX. 305 The flat roof has..a loose vermiculite filling.] 1950Archit. Rev. CVIII. 332/2 A 4 in. thickness of vermiculite *loosefill for instance has the same thermal insulation as 24 times that thickness of concrete. 1956Good Housek. Home Encycl. (ed. 4) 170/2 ‘Loose fill’ which is poured or packed..between the joists. 1964J. S. Scott Dict. Building 198 Loose-fill insulation, insulating materials such as granulated cork, loose asbestos..vermiculite. Loose fill is placed between rafters or studs to increase the insulating value of a dry air space. 1969Daily Tel. 16 Sept. 15 Most house⁓holders can climb into their lofts and lay mineral wool or glass fibre over the joists, or loose-fill between them.
1809Malkin Gil Blas vii. vii, Girls in a servile condition of life, or those unfortunate *loose fish who are game for every sportsman. 1827Egan Anecd. Turf 72 A game known among the loose fish who frequent races..by the name of ‘the thimble-rig’. 1864Sat. Rev. July 84/1 That peculiar variety of Parliamentary species known as ‘an outsider’ or ‘a loose fish,’ but described by itself under the more flattering title of ‘an independent member’. 1883Clark Russell Sailors' Lang., Loose-fish, a whaling term signifying that the whale is fair game for anybody who can catch it.
a1734North Lives (1742) 77 He was weary of being at the *loose hand as to company.
1907‘Old International’ Rugby Guide 62 It was discovered that on the flank of the row where the ball came into the scrum there was a head overhanging the side of the scrum. This head was given the appellation of ‘*loose head’. 1917[see head n.1 26 c]. 1927[see hooker1 6]. 1960C. Venables Instructions to Young Rugger Players iii. 37 When the two scrummages are formed they pack down and, of course, the heads of the two front rows are interlocked. But, with three men in each row, this clearly means that one man in each row will have his head free. This is known as the ‘loose head’ and it is on that side that the scrum half will put the ball in, for the good reason that his own hooker will be nearer to the ball than the hooker on the other side. 1960E. S. & W. J. Higham High Speed Rugby xiv. 191 The loose-head prop puts the inside foot forward. Ibid. 195 We will refer to the hooker who has the loose head..as the ‘loose-head hooker’.
1960Farmer & Stockbreeder 5 Jan. 53/1 Half [the herd] is *loose-housed and zero-grazed. Ibid. 12 Jan. 78/1 Three sides of the yard accommodating the 55 pedigree..Friesians loose-housed are filled by the covered lying shed. 1963C. T. M. Herriot tr. Craplet's Dairy Cow v. xvii. 374 Loose-housed animals are less nervous than those kept in byres.
1946Agric. Engineering XXVII. 499/2 The *loose-housing barn and milking parlor seemed to offer a possible improvement. 1948Pop. Bull. Washington Agric. Exper. Station No. 190 (title) The loose housing and feeding of dairy herds. Ibid. 2 Loose housing is becoming popular. 1963C. T. M. Herriot tr. Craplet's Dairy Cow v. xvii. 369 Loose housing provides a well-compacted, thoroughly decomposed manure. Ibid., Cows to be kept under a loose housing system can become accustomed to communal living.
1774C. J. Phipps Voy. N. Pole 38 At one in the afternoon, being still amongst the *loose ice. 1835Sir J. Ross Narr. 2nd Voy. Explan. Terms p. xv, Loose ice, a number of pieces of ice near each other, but through which the ship can make way.
1825J. Nicholson Operat. Mechanic 382 A strap passing from a drum over a *fast and loose pulley. 1873J. Richards Wood-working Factories, 62 Loose pulleys will give trouble now and then, no matter how well they are fitted.
1874G. H. West Rugby Union Football Ann. 66 A light and very useful forward, especially in a *loose scrummage. 1936Loose scrummage [see heel-back (heel n.1 26)]. 1952Rugby Union Football (‘Know the Game’ Series) (ed. 2) 26 A ‘loose’ scrum..is formed by..players closing round the ball when it is on the ground. 1958Pelmear & Morpurgo Rugby Football viii. 339 Loose scrummaging (now sometimes known as ‘rucking’) was becoming the half-back's delight. 1960E. S. & W. J. Higham High Speed Rugby xiv. 201 It is possible to build up a loose scrum in two ways.
18902nd Ann. Rep. Kansas State Exper. Station 1889 213 The *loose smuts are four closely allied species found on oats, wheat, and barley. 1909Bull. Bureau Plant Industry, U.S. Dept. Agric. No. 152. 7 The loose smut..is easily distinguished from the covered smut by its earlier appearance, by its olive-green spore-mass.., and by the early shedding of the spores. 1924Jrnl. Agric. Res. XXIX. 263/1 Formaldehyde and some of the organic mercury compounds have been found to control the loose-smut of barley in certain varieties. 1968Times 16 Dec. 7/1 Loose smut in barley..has become a serious problem again because of the preponderance of susceptible varieties.
1903F. T. Bullen in Strand Mag. Nov. 539/1 All through the combat..the whale-fishers will be closely beset by the ‘*loose’ whale.
a1548Hall Chron., Hen. VIII 58 b, Velvet, covered all over with braunches of hony suckels of fyne flat gold of dammaske, of *lose worke, every lefe of the braunche moving. 1577–87Holinshed Chron. III. 844/2 A curious lose worke of veluet imbrodered with gold.
10. Comb.
a. In concord with ns., forming adjectival combs., as loose-needle, loose-wrist.
1866Athenæum No. 1997. 178/3 Loose-wrist practice [in pianoforte-playing] is a most excellent thing. 1883Gresley Gloss. Coal Mining, Dialling, the operation of making a survey with the dial. There are two ways of using the instrument, known as loose needle and fast needle dialling.
b. with pples., loose being used as a complement, as loose-broke, loose-hanging, loose-hung, loose-let, loose-lying adjs.
1807J. Barlow Columb. v. 203 His troops press forward like a *loose-broke flood.
1598Marston Sco. Villanie ii. vii. F 6, Her *loose-hanging gowne For her loose lying body. 1851Longfellow Gold. Leg. iii. Street in Strasburg, What news do you bring with your loose-hanging rein?
1625K. Long tr. Barclay's Argenis ii. xx. 133 The *loose⁓hung banners. 1872A. de Vere Leg. St. Patrick, St. P. & Armagh Cath., With tangled locks and loose-hung battle-axe Ran the wild kerne. 1870Swinburne Ess. & Stud. (1875) 261 Effeminate in build, loose-hung, weak of eye and foot.
1601Mary Magd. Lament. vi. xxvi. (Fuller Worthies Miscell. II.), My *loose-let soule.
1814Southey Roderick Poet. Wks. 1838 IX. 53 Soon they scoop'd Amid *loose-lying sand a hasty grave.
c. parasynthetic adjs., as loose-barbed, loose-curled, loose-flowered, loose-girdled, loose-handed, loose-hipped, loose-jointed, loose-limbed, loose-lived, loose-locked, loose-panicled, loose-principled, loose-robed, loose-spiked, loose-wived.
1901Blackw. Mag. Dec. 742/2 Their spears with *loose⁓barbed points.
1882Ouida Maremma I. 152 Her bronze⁓hued, *loose-curled head.
1837Macgillivray Withering's Brit. Pl. (ed. 4) 346 *Loose-flowered Alpine Carex.
1894Gladstone Horace's Odes 35 With thee, *loose-girdled Graces come.
1870Lowell Among my Bks. Ser. i. (1873) 223 To draw the line..between a wise generosity and a *loose-handed weakness of giving.
1648Herrick Hesper. (1869) I. 64 First Jollie's wife is lame; then next, *loose⁓hipt, Squint-ey'd, hook-nos'd.
1859Jephson Brittany iii. 28 Big-headed, *loose-jointed..carriage-horses.
1823Cobbett Rur. Rides (1885) I. 303 The cattle appear to be all of the Sussex breed..*loose-limbed. 1889Doyle Micah Clarke 236 A long loose-limbed seaman came up from the mouth of the cave.
1641J. Trappe Theol. Theol. 250 *Loose-lived ministers.
a1661B. Holyday Juvenal 94 *Loose⁓lock'd Sabines, who a battle stay'd.
1825Greenhouse Comp. II. 43 Otidialaxa, *loose-panicled Otidia.
1858J. Martineau Stud. Chr. 188 A *loose-principled and unholy being.
1777E. Ryves Poems 60 Where *loose-rob'd Pleasure careless roves.
1837Macgillivray Withering's Brit. Pl. (ed. 4) 346 *Loose⁓spiked Rock Carex.
1606Shakes. Ant. & Cl. i. ii. 75 It is a heart-breaking to see a handsome man *loose Wiu'd.
d. Special combs.: † loose-bellied a., having the bowels relaxed; loose-bodied a., (of a dress) loose-fitting; † fig. lewd, wanton; † loose-breech, a slovenly lout; † loose-clacked a., loquacious, chattering; loose-ended a., ended or finished off in a slack, untidy, or inconclusive way; also fig.; hence loose-endedness; loose-footed a., having a loose foot (in quot., said of a sail); † fig. ready on one's feet, at liberty to travel; loose-gowned a., wearing a loosely-fitting dress; † fig. wanton; † loose-hangled a. [f. hangle hingle], loose-jointed; † loose-hilted a., ‘loose in the hilts’, incontinent, wanton; loose-kirtle (quasi-arch.), a wanton; loose-knit a., connected in a tenuous or ill-defined way; not closely linked; † loose-legged, † loose-tailed adjs., unchaste, incontinent; loose-lipped a., (a) loose-tongued; uninhibited in speech; (b) having full lips; loose-mouthed a. = loose-lipped adj.; loose-skinned a., having skin wrinkled or hanging in folds; loose-tongued a., blabbing; † loose-waistcoateer, ? a woman.
1565Cooper Thesaurus, Aluus liquanda, he must be made *loose bealyed.
1596Shakes. Tam. Shr. iv. iii. 136 If euer I said *loose-bodied gowne, sow me in the skirts of it. 1621B. Jonson Gipsies Metam. (1640) 67 Christian shall get her a loose bodide-gowne. 1625Shirley School of Compl. ii. i, Hee's giddy-headed, and loose-bodied. 1672Dryden 1st Pt. Conq. Granada Epil., And oft the lacquey, or the brawny clown, Gets what is hid in the loose-bodied gown.
1575Gamm. Gurton iii. iii, I faith, sir *loose-breche, had ye taried, ye shold haue found your match!
1661K. W. Conf. Charac., Informer (1860) 45 His dam was..some *loose clackt bitch or other.
1867J. R. Lowell in Atlantic Monthly Jan. 24 *Loose-ended souls, whose skills bring scanty gold. 1937Times Lit. Suppl. 15 May 379/1 The weaving of three themes through the tenuous and loose-ended plot. 1944Horizon IX. 286 My purpose is to indicate..how we loose-ended mortals are dealt with.
1905Proc. Roy. Soc. LXXV. 378 There was no slackness or *loose-endedness about him either physically or intellectually. 1968Punch 3 Jan. 4/2 The problem, which mightn't worry some people but had teased me for a fortnight by its sheer loose-endedness.
1717Wodrow Corr. (1843) II. 315 Were I as *loose-footed as I have been, I could come to London to have the benefit of reading it. 1878J. H. Beadle Western Wilds ii. 38 Every loose-footed man wanted to go. Ibid. xxviii. 442 Loose-footed young men erect a cabin, barely habitable in good weather. 1895Outing (U.S.) XXVI. 46/1 Tricing up the tack if the sail is loose-footed. 1927G. Bradford Gloss. Sea Terms 104/2 Loose-footed, a fore and aft sail not laced to (or without) a boom. 1948R. de Kerchove Internat. Maritime Dict. 433/2 Loose-footed, an expression used for denoting a fore-and-aft sail in which the foot is not laced to the boom.
a1717Parnell Donne's 3rd Sat. 36 Or for some idol of thy fancy draw Some *loose-gown'd dame.
1611Cotgr. s.v. Long, Longue eschine..a tall, ill-fauoured, *loose-hangled boobie.
a1652Brome New Academy ii. i. Wks. 1873 II. 28 Your *loose-hilted Mystresses.
1855Kingsley Westw. Ho! xxx, Here's a fellow..talks about failing, as if he were a Barbican *loose-kirtle trying to keep her apple-squire ashore!
1906T. Hardy Dynasts II i. vii. 42 As he shatters the moves of the *loose-knit nations to curb his exploitful soul's ambitions. 1957E. Bott Family & Social Network iii. 94 Networks become loose-knit when people move from one place to another... If both husband and wife have moved considerably before marriage, each will bring an already loose-knit network to the marriage. 1963Times 11 Mar. 3/5 The Welsh forwards performed doughty deeds individually, but were too loose-knit to hold their opponents, which was bad luck on D. C. T. Rowlands, whose most effective game thrives on a dominant pack. 1968Daily Tel. Mag. 8 Nov. 27/4 The ARB team is loose-knit and embraces a cross-section of specialists.
1599Marston Sco. Villanie ii. vi. 199 Here's one must inuocate some *lose⁓leg'd Dame.
1919J. Masefield Reynard 33 *Loose-lipped with song and wine and revel. 1924W. de la Mare Ding Dong Bell 70 Hook-nosed was I; loose-lipped. 1924C. Mackenzie Heavenly Ladder xiii. 186 It was sad to see a young woman of thirty so loose-lipped and blowsy. 1928Daily Mail 13 Aug. 5/1 Her mastery of what Sir William Watson has called the loose-lipped lingo of the streets. 1934H. G. Wells Exper. Autobiogr. II. ix. 679 If I were to put my reputation before my autobiographical rectitude, I think I should just let this little volume decay and char and disappear... Most of it is very loose-lipped indeed. 1934W. B. Yeats King of Great Clock Tower 29 Had de Valera eaten Parnell's heart No loose-lipped demagogue had won the day.
1872J. G. Whittier Pennsylvania Pilgrim in Poet. Wks. (1874) 447 We may trace How *loose-mouthed boor and fine ancestral grace Sat in close contrast. 1931W. Faulkner Sanctuary xxii. 203 You'll know I ain't loose-mouthed. 1938Times Lit. Suppl. 18 June 415/4 Were all Roman aristocrats loose-mouthed and pot⁓bellied? 1950D. Gascoyne Vagrant 53 He is apt to get oddly pedantic about the proprieties while even more loose-mouthed than ever.
1906Westm. Gaz. 14 June 4/2 This old man had a full, *loose-skinned face, with a comic mouth and forlorn eyes. 1909Ibid. 5 Jun. 2/2 The sail heaved like a gigantic loose-skinned animal awakening. 1937V. Woolf Years 397 His swarthy wrinkled face..always made her think of some loose-skinned, furry animal. 1941Blunden Thomas Hardy v. 110 Hands very white and soft and loose-skinned.
1598J. Dickenson Greene in Conc. (1878) 147 Her *loose-taild gossips which first intic't her to folly. 1689Carlile Fortune Hunters iv. 43 You have fixt her in the Rank of loose-tail'd Ladies.
1647Ward Simp. Cobler 25, I shall..make bold..to borrow a little of their *loose tongued Liberty. 1883Daily News 7 Nov. 5/4 The Marquis thought some of his Paris Attachés had been rather too loose-tongued.
a1658Cleveland Pet. Poem 18 So that my Doublet pin'd, makes me appear Not like a Man but a *Loose-wastcoateer.
B. quasi-n. and n.
1. absol. in phrases.
a. on (or † upon) the loose: (a) (behaving) in an unrestrained or dissolute fashion; ‘on the spree’; (b) of women: living by prostitution; (c) gen., not tied down; not answerable to anyone.
1749J. Cleland Mem. Woman Pleasure II. 9 The giddy, wildness of young girls once got upon the loose. 1849J. Hannay King Dobbs v. 76 One evening, when they were at Gibraltar, on the look-out for amusement—in modern parlance, ‘on the loose’,—they went into a little wine-shop [etc.]. 1859Punch 9 July 22/1 Our friend prone to vices you never may see, Though he goes on the Loose, or the Cut, or the Spree. 1859Hotten Dict. Slang 70 On the loose, obtaining a living by prostitution, in reality, on the streets. The term is applied to females only. 1872Ibid. 20 July 23/1 Having to appear at the police court in order to give evidence for one of your fast friends who has been out upon the loose. 1879Roget's Thesaurus 330 Impure; unclean &c...; on the streets, on the pavé, on the loose. 1890Barrère & Leland Dict. Slang II. Loose, on the,..getting a living by prostitution. 1914G. B. Shaw Fanny's First Play iii. 201 Do you mean to say that you went on the loose out of pure devilment? 1935N. Ersine Underworld & Prison Slang 51 Ted is on the loose. 1949Partridge Dict. Underworld 483/2 On the loose, obtaining a living by prostitution. 1951E. Paul Springtime in Paris i. 12 Just then Raoul was spending all his free time with the peace posters and Katya stayed at home. When the roles were reversed, and Katya was on the loose, no one knew precisely what she was about. 1958Times Lit. Suppl. 30 May 293/2 A group of young Americans.., some being genuinely on the loose or moving from job to job. 1970V. Canning Great Affair xvii. 319 There was a little mistiming at Sokota so your friend King Alfy is on the loose.
b. in the loose: not made up into or prepared in a particular form.
1898Westm. Gaz. 19 Nov. 8/1 Of this [collection of cigar ends] about 1½ cwt. was sold in the loose to a tobacco manufacturer at 1s. per lb.
2. Rugby Football. That part of the play in which the ball travels freely from player to player, as distinguished from the scrummage.
1892Pall Mall G. 25 Jan. 1/2 They carried the ‘scrums’, and were quicker in the ‘loose’. 1894–5Rugby Union Football Handbk. 11 ‘Offside’ is still penalised in the loose, but not Solon himself..could define where a scrummage ends and the loose begins. 1900Westm. Gaz. 12 Dec. 7/2 In the loose both packs did well, but the Oxford men were the more brilliant. 1922‘Touch Flag’ Mod. Rugby Tactics 49 Dangerous attacks frequently originate from chance openings in the loose. 1963Rugby World Aug. 8/3 Wightman and Rogers impressed in the loose for England. 1974Country Life 5 Dec. 1717/1 The All Blacks..were..gaining their expected supremacy at the line-out and in the loose.
C. adv.
1. Loosely; with a loose hold. to sit loose (fig.): to be independent or indifferent; to hold loosely to, not to be enslaved to; occas. not to weigh heavily upon. † So to hang loose (to). to hold loose: to be indifferent.
1591H. Smith Pride Nabuch. 27 How earnest hee was about his dreame and how loose he sat after in his pallace. 1647Trapp Comm. Epist. & Rev. 83 The best counsell I can give you, is that you hang loose to all these outward comforts. 1680P. Henry Diaries & Lett. (1882) 281 Theref. get loose, my soul, from these th. & sitt loose to them. 1683Temple Mem. Wks. 1731 I. 480, I found within a Fortnight after I arriv'd, that he sat very loose with the King his Master. 1706Atterbury Funeral Serm. Bennet 6 To sit as loose from those Pleasures, and be as moderate in the use of them, as they can. 1711Addison Spect. No. 119 ⁋2 The fashionable World is grown free and easy; our Manners sit more loose upon us. 1858Carlyle Fredk. Gt. ii. xiii. I. 175 A fluctuating series of governors holding loose, and not in earnest. 1880Macm. Mag. No. 245. 397 To the rubrical theories he simply sat loose.
2. to play fast and loose († loose or fast): see fast and loose b.
a1555Lyndesay Tragedy 196 We mycht full weill haue leuit in peace and rest, Nyne or ten ȝeris, and than playit lowis or fast.
3. Comb., as loose-driving, loose-enrobed, loose-fitting, loose-floating, loose-flowing, loose-living, loose-thinking, loose-wadded, loose-woven, loose-writ adjs.
1729Savage Wanderer i. 165 Yon limeless Sands *loose⁓driving with the Wind.
1598Shakes. Merry W. iv. vi. 41 *Loose en-roab'd With Ribonds-pendant flaring 'bout her head.
1881H. James Portr. Lady xxv, Ralph had a kind of *loose-fitting urbanity that wrapped him about like an ill-made overcoat.
1727–46Thomson Summer 1316 In folds *loose-floating fell the fainter lawn.
1777Potter æschylus, Seven agst. Thebes 159 Their *loose-flowing hair. 1873Longfellow Milton 6 Its loose-flowing garments.
1607Tourneur Rev. Trag. i. ii. Wks. 1878 II. 18 With easie Doctors, those *loose-liuing men.
1862R. H. Patterson Ess. Hist. & Art 108 In this *loose-thinking style.
1841Thackeray Men & Coats Wks. 1900 XIII. 610 Your *loose-wadded German schlafrock..is the laziest, filthiest invention.
1627–47Feltham Resolves i. ii. 4 That which puts the *loose-woven minde into a whirling tempest. 1901K. Steuart By Allan Water x. 275 Their webs of loose-woven cloth.
a1720Sheffield (Dk. Buckhm.) Wks. (1753) I. 76 The *loose writ libels of this age.
Senses A. 1 l in Dict. become A. 1 m. Add: [A.] [1.] l. Active, agile. Newfoundland dial.
1907J. G. Millais Newfoundland ii. 40 A' was a ‘loose’ (active) little kid, and used to help de men. Ibid. 41 You're bound to fall in the cracks [in the floe ice] least once a night, however ‘loose’ you may be. 1982in G. M. Story et al. Dict. Newfoundland Eng. 314/2 [She] was complimented on her agility by an elderly gentleman who said to her, ‘My, miss, you'm a loose woman.’ Ibid., [He's a] loose man on ice.
▪ III. loose, v.|luːs|
Forms: 3 leowsin (? for lowsin), 4 lauce, laus, lowss, loyse, 4–5 (also 9 dial.) lause, lawse, 4–6 lous, lose, loiss, (also 7–9 dial.) louse, lowse, (5 losyn, louce), 5–6 louss, loss, (6 looce, looze, los, loase, lows, lowis, lewce), 6–7 leuse, 4– loose. pa. tense 4 laused, etc.; also 5 laust, 6 loust, 7 loost. pa. pple. 4 laused, etc.; strong (rare) 4 losine, 6 losen.
[f. loose a. Cf. leese v.2]
1. a. trans. To let loose, set free; to release (a person, an animal, or their limbs) from bonds or physical restraint.
a1225Juliana 38 Ichulle þe leowsin [Bodl. MS. lowse] ant leauen hwen me þuncheð. a1300Cursor M. 14356 [Lazar] in winding clath..was wonden,..‘Louses him nu’, he said. c1400Destr. Troy 7884 Deliuert were þo lordes, lawsit of prisone. c1470Henry Wallace x. 727 Schyr, loss me off my band. 1470–85Malory Arthur xi. xii. 589, I requyre the lose me of my boundes. 1497Extracts Aberd. Reg. (1844) I. 60 And nocht to be lousit out of the goif quhile the saide hour, for nay request. 1530Palsgr. 615/1 Lowse this prisoner from his yrones, he muste be removed from this gaylle. 1535Coverdale Mark xi. 4 They..founde the foale tyed by y⊇ dore..and lowsed it. 1581Act 23 Eliz. c. 10 §4 So as they..doe presentlye loose and let goe everye Feasaunte and Partridge so taken. 1611Bible Isa. li. 14 The captiue exile hasteneth that he may be loosed. 1697Dryden Virg. Past. vi. 38 Loose me, he cry'd, 'twas Impudence to find A sleeping God, 'tis Sacrilege to bind. 1821Shelley Prometh. Unb. ii. ii. 94 How he [the chained Titan] shall be loosed. 1840Browning Sordello ii. 211 Like Perseus when he loosed his naked love. 1865Trollope Belton Est. xx. 232 Belton had gone into the stable, and had himself loosed the animal.
b. In immaterial sense: To set free, release, emancipate; † to absolve (a person). Const. from († of).
1340Hampole Pr. Consc. 2182, I yhern..be loused away Fra þis life. c1375Sc. Leg. Saints xvi. (Magdalena) 985 Syndry seke men gettis þare hele, & are lousit of mekil payne. c1400Destr. Troy 13250 At the last, fro þat lady, I lausyt myselfe. c1425Cursor M. 18327 (Trin.) From deþ of helle to lousen vs. 1533Gau Richt Vay 24 Quhil we be lowsit of this mortal body. 1559Bk. Com. Prayer, Occas. Prayers, Let the pitifulnes of thy great mercy lose vs. 1570–6Lambarde Peramb. Kent (1826) 149 Loosing them from al duty of allegiance to their Prince. 1611Bible Luke xiii. 12 Woman, thou art loosed from thy infirmitie. 1637–50Row Hist. Kirk (1842) 130 It was concluded,..that he shall be lowsed fra the said sentence. 1784Cowper Task ii. 39 They [sc. slaves] themselves once ferried o'er the wave That parts us, are emancipate and loosed. 1842Tennyson Godiva 37 She sent a herald forth, And bad him cry,..that she would loose The people. 1902A. M. Fairbairn Philos. Chr. Relig. III. ii. ii. 542 God as interpreted through Him [Christ] was loosed from the qualities that bound Him to a peculiar people.
c. esp. with allusion to Matt. xvi. 19, xviii. 18. Also absol.
a1300Cursor M. 18189 Quat art þou þat louses þaa Þat formast sin sua band in wa? 1340Hampole Pr. Consc. 3852 Alle þat þou lowses in erthe right Sal be loused in heven bright. c1375Sc. Leg. Saints i. (Petrus) 17 To bind and louss quhowm-euer þou will Plane powar is gewin þe þare-till. c1400Mandeville (Roxb.) iii. 9 To wham Godd gaffe full powere for to bynd and to louse. 1526Pilgr. Perf. (W. de W. 1531) 225 b, What so euer thou loose in erth, it shall be losen in heuen. a1548Hall Chron., Edw. IV 199 Havyng full aucthoritie to bynd and to lose, to contracte and conclude. 1567Gude & Godlie Ball. (S.T.S.) 192 Saif Christ onlie that deit on tre He may baith louse and bind. 1892E. P. Barlow Regni Evangelium i. 57 What they have bound no other hand must loose.
d. To free (the lips, tongue, etc.) from constraint.
a1375Joseph Arim. 49 Louse þi lippes a-twynne & let þe gost worche. 1567Gude & Godlie Ball. (S.T.S.) 127 My lippis Lord than louse thow sall. 1629Sir W. Mure True Crvcifixe 2283 Now doe the wicked louse their tongues to lyes. 1822Shelley Zucca x. 8 Sounds of softest song..Had loosed the heart of him who sat and wept. 1842Tennyson Vision of Sin 88 Let me screw thee up a peg: Let me loose thy tongue with wine. 1902Expositor May 383 The wine loosed the tongues of the guests.
†e. To set free from disease. Obs.
a1637B. Jonson Praises Country Life 58 Or the herb Sorrell, that loves Meadows still, Or Mallowes loosing bodyes ill.
2. a. To undo, untie, unfasten (fetters, a knot); to break (a seal); † occas. with up. † to loose down (Sc.): to unfasten and let down. Now dial. or poet.
a1300–1400Cursor M. 12823 (Gött.), I es noght worthi to louse [Cott. lese] þe thwanges of his scho. c1375Sc. Leg. Saints xix. (Cristofore) 510 Þai..lousit þare beltis spedly. 1388Wyclif Acts xvi. 26 Alle the doris weren openyd, and the boondis of alle weren lousid. a1400–50Alexander 788* Þus lowtes þis lede on low & lowsys hys chynez. 1530Palsgr. 494/1 You have so confused this yerne that it can nat be losed asonder. Ibid. 615/2 Lowse the knotte of my garter. 1535Coverdale Rev. v. 2 Who is worthy to open the boke, and to loose the seales therof? c1560A. Scott Poems (S.T.S.) iv. 42 It settis not madynis als To latt men lowis thair laice. 1563Mirr. Mag., Somerset xvi, When the chiefe lynke was lewced fro the chayne. 1591Spenser Bellay's Visions ix, With side-long beard, and locks down hanging loast. 1725Ramsay Gentle Sheph. iv. i, The witch..Lows'd down my breeks. 1742Young Nt. Th. v. 30 Wit calls the graces the chaste zone to loose. 1822Shelley Triumph Life 147 They..Throw back their heads and loose their streaming hair.
fig.1535Coverdale Mark vii. 35 His eares were opened, and the bonde of his tonge was lowsed. 1548Udall, etc. Erasm. Par. Matt. xii. 71 Loused the knot of the question. c1620A. Hume Brit. Tongue (1865) 9 The knot [is] harder to louse, for nether syde wantes sum reason. 1713Addison Cato ii. i. 20 Other Prospects Have loosed those Ties and bound him fast to Cæsar. 1859Tennyson Vivien 192 Then our bond Had best be loosed for ever.
b. To unlock or unpack (a chest, etc.); to unpack (goods). Also with forth, out; occas. absol. Chiefly Sc.
Phr. (Sc.) † to loose the box: to open one's coffers, to pay up. † to loose one's poke, pack: to open one's budget, to ‘out with it’.
13..Gaw. & Gr. Knt. 2376 He kaȝt to þe knot & þe kest lawsez. 1545R. Ascham Toxoph. (Arb.) 108 Lette vs returne agayne vnto our matter, and those thynges whyche you haue packed vp, in so shorte a roume, we wyll lowse them forthe. 1583Leg. Bp. St. Androis 228 in Satir. Poems Reform. xlv, He pat him off with mowis and mockis, And had no will to louse the boxe. 1725Ramsay Gentle Sheph. ii. i, But loose your poke; be 't true or fause let's hear. 1785Burns Jolly Beggars Recit. viii, The jovial thrang The poet did request, To lowse his pack, an' wale a sang. 1855Robinson Whitby Gloss., To Lowse out, to untie, to unloose or unpack goods.
†c. To unjoin or unclasp (hands). Obs.
1548–9(Mar.) Bk. Com. Prayer, Matrimony, Then shall they..looce theyr handes. 1566Child-Marriages 69 Then the[y] losid handes. 1588Shakes. Tit. A. ii. iii. 243.
d. To detach, cast loose, let go: chiefly Naut. † Also with forth. † to loose out (a knife): to unsheathe it. † Also, to remove (an article of clothing) from the body.
1382Wyclif Exod. iii. 5 Lowse thow thi shoyng fro thi feyt. c1400Destr. Troy 2806 Paris..and his pure brother..Lauset loupis fro the le; lachyn in Ancres [L. solutis itaque funibus, subductis anchoris]. c1400Melayne 1067 The Sarazene..lawses out a knyfe full righte. c1470Henry Wallace vii. 1160 Bownd on the trest in a creddill to sit, To lous the pyne quhen Wallace leit him witt. 1513Douglas æneis iii. iv. 110 Do lows the rabandis, and lat doun the sail. 1530Palsgr. 615/2 Lowse your shoe and gyve hym upon the heed withall. 1535Coverdale Luke v. 5 Vpon thy worde I wil lowse forth the nett. a1578Lindesay (Pitscottie) Chron. Scot. (S.T.S.) I. 324 The king..past to his chamber and loussit his claithis and maid him to his bede. 1632Massinger City Madam i. ii, I will not loose a hat To a hairs breadth, move your Bever, I'le move mine. 1669Sturmy Mariner's Mag. i. 16 Therefore up a hand and loose fore Top sail in the Top, that the Ships may see we will Sail. 1706Phillips (ed. Kersey) s.v. Let-fall, If the Main-Yard, or Fore-Yard be struck down, so that the Sails may be loosed before the Yard be hoised, then the Mariners do not say, Let fall the Sail, but Loose the Sail. 1769Falconer Dict. Marine (1780), To Loose, to unfurl or cast loose any sail, in order to be set, or dried, after rainy weather. 1821Shelley Boat on Serchio 88 The chain is loosed, the sails are spread. 1863Geo. Eliot Romola lxi, She loosed the boat from its moorings. 1867Smyth Sailor's Word-Bk., To loose a rope, to cast it off, or let it go.
e. Sc. To detach the team from (a plough, etc.). Also absol.
c1480Henryson Mor. Fab. 2253 in Anglia IX. 471 The oxin waxit mair reulie at the last, Syne efter thay lousit [etc.]. a1568Wyfe of Auchtermuchty ii. in Bannatyne Poems (1873) 342 He lowsit the pluche at the landis end. Ibid. xiii. 345 She lowisit the plwch and syne come hame. 1791J. Learmont Poems 56 Twa lads..War gaen at pleugh their forenoon yokin: At length baith tir'd wi' heat o' noon, They loos'd an' on the lee lay down. 1893Crockett Stickit Minister 117 He was oot a' nicht, an' I havna seen him since he lowsed.
† f. To carve (a pheasant). Obs.
c1500For to serve a Lord in Babees Bk. (1868) 395 To lose or unlase a fesaunt.
†g. intr. for refl. To come unfastened. Obs.
1760–72H. Brooke Fool of Qual. (1809) IV. 84 The picture..suddenly looses from its ribband.
3.
†a. to loose the anchor: to weigh anchor. Also, to loose one's bark. Obs.
c1450St. Cuthbert (Surtees) 675 Þe man went and loused þe ankir. 1555Eden Decades (Arb.) 69 They lowsed theyr ankers and departed from Guadalupea. 1567Turberv. Ovid's Epist. Q ij b, Auale and lose thy Barcke, take seas. 1596Dalrymple tr. Leslie's Hist. Scot. x. 307 The frenche shipis beginis to lous thair anker, and stryk sail at Bristoo.
b. Hence absol. To weigh anchor. occas. with up.
1526Tindale Acts xxvii. 2 We entred into a shippe of Adramicium, and lowsed from lond. 1587Fleming Contn. Holinshed III. 975/1 The baron de la Gard..leused from Déepe with twelue gallies. 1594Marlowe & Nashe Dido iv. iii, To stay my Fleete from loosing forth the Bay. 1635Foxe & James Voy. N.W. (Hakluyt Soc.) I. 180 This noone he loost up for the shore. 1677Lond. Gaz. No. 1245/3 This morning the light Ships that were at Anchor in this Bay, loosed, and are sailed to the Northwards. 1690W. Walker Idiomat. Anglo-Lat. 277 Our ship loosed from the harbour. 1867Smyth Sailor's Word-bk. Loosing for sea, weighing the anchor.
4. a. To shoot or let fly (an arrow); to let off (a gun).
c1400Mandeville (Roxb.) xxiv. 112 Ga and louse ȝone arowes. 1473J. Warkworth Chron. (Camden) 8 The Kynge..losyde his gonnys of ordynaunce uppone them. 1530Palsgr. 615/1, I lowse, as a gonner lowseth a pece of ordonaunce. 1582N. Lichfield Castanheda's Discov. E. Ind. i. lvii. 120 As the Nayre loosed off his arrow. 1599Shakes. Hen. V, i. ii. 207 As many Arrowes loosed seuerall wayes Come to one marke. 1638Junius Paint. Ancients 324 Such archers..use..to loose their arrowes in a more comely manner. 1814Cary Dante, Par. i. 122 That strong cord that never looses dart But at fair aim. 1818Shelley Rev. Islam x. xxvi, Like a shaft loosed by the bowman's error. 1916‘Boyd Cable’ Action Front 48 The artillery made a regular practice of loosing off a stated number of rounds per night. 1944R.A.F. Jrnl. Aug. 286 Dropped our bomb⁓load..an' loosed off all our ammo.
transf.1820Shelley Vis. Sea 4 When lightning is loosed.
b. absol. or intr. To shoot, let fly. Also said of the gun. Now usu. with off. Also loosing off.
1387Trevisa Higden (Rolls) VII. 77 Þe childe losed and schette. 1530Palsgr. 615/1, I thought full lytell he wolde have lowsed at me whan I sawe hym drawe his bowe. Ibid. 681/2 Se howe yonder gonne reculeth or ever she lowse. 1545R. Ascham Toxoph. (Arb.) 161 Houlde and nocke trewlye, drawe and lowse equallye. a1548Hall Chron., Hen. VIII 56 b, Al the .11. C. archers shot and losed at once. 1588Shakes. Tit. A. iv. iii. 58 (He giues them the Arrowes.) Too it Boy, Marcus loose when I bid. 1603B. Jonson Sejanus iii. iii, Nor must he looke at what, or whom to strike, But loose at all. 1889Rider Haggard Allan's Wife 80 Reserving their fire till the Zulus were packed like sheep in a kraal, they loosed into them with the roers. 1893Field 25 Mar. 456/3, I threw up my gun mechanically, but had no intention of ‘loosing’ at the poor thing. 1900Daily News 1 Oct. 7/3 Paget's artillerymen dashed forward, unlimbered, and loosed on the foe. 1906Westm. Gaz. 9 Mar. 4/1 The man for whom the whole of shooting is comprised in the gunning—in the ‘loosing off’, as he will call it. 1926Punch 28 July 86/2 The bowler would acquire the trick of looking at one [wicket] while really he was loosing off at the other. 1928Blunden Undertones of War ii. 8 The howitzer loosing off occasionally outside punctuated these amenities. 1946J. Irving Royal Navalese 110 To loose off, to open fire.
c. trans. (transf. and fig.) To give vent to, emit; to cause or allow to proceed from one.
1508Kennedy Flyting w. Dunbar 28 Ramowd rebald, thow fall doun att the roist, My laureat lettres at the and I lowis. 1600Shakes. A.Y.L. iii. v. 103 Loose now and then A scattred smile, and that Ile liue vpon. 1601― All's Well ii. iii. 172 Both my reuenge and hate Loosing vpon thee. 1687Evelyn Diary 19 Apr., His..delicateness in extending and looseing a note with incomparable softnesse. 1847Tennyson Princess ii. 407 And loose A flying charm of blushes o'er this cheek.
†5. To weaken the adhesion or attachment of; = loosen v. 3; to make unstable or insecure in position. Also intr. for pass. Now only arch.
13..E.E Allit. P. B. 957 Þe rayn rueled doun..Gorde to gomorra þat þe grounde laused. 1375Barbour Bruce vi. 253 A gret stane..That throu the gret anciente Was lowsyt, reddy for to fall. c1420Chron. Vilod. st. 1117 Þen sye he how his fedris weron lewesode ychone. 1523Fitzherb. Husb. §126 With the wyndynge of the edderynges thou dost leuse thy stakes and therfore they must nedes be..hardened agayne. 1526Pilgr. Perf. (W. de W. 1531) 254 The hole frame of the ioyntes of his body dissolued and losed. 1530Palsgr. 615/1, I lowse a tree or herbe from the roote. Ibid., Se howe the heate hath made these bordes to lowse asonder. c1550Lloyd Treas. Health (? 1550) H iij, A stroke or faul, wherby the ioyntes of the backe bone ar loused. 1611Bible Ecclus. xxii, 16 As timbers girt and bound together in a building cannot be loosed with shaking. 1864Swinburne Atalanta 1062 The firm land have they loosed and shaken.
6. a. To make loose or slack; to loosen, slacken, relax, make less tight; † pass. (of nerves) to be unstrung. † to loose a bridle to: to indulge. Now arch. exc. in colloq. phr. to loose hold: to let go.
c1440Promp. Parv. 314/1 Losyn, or slakyn, laxo, relaxo. 1530Palsgr. 720/2, I lowse a thynge that was to strayte tyed. 1577B. Googe Heresbach's Husb. (1586) 67 The olde Rosyars must haue the Earth loosed about them in Februarie, and the dead twigges cutte of. 1581G. Pettie tr. Guazzo's Civ. Conv. (1586) ii. 117 Our lyfe is like to instruments of Musicke, which sometime wresting vp the strings, and sometime by loosing them, become more melodious. 1596Dalrymple tr. Leslie's Hist. Scot. ii. 152 Occasione frilie to louse a brydle to al thair appetites. c1614Sir W. Mure Dido & æneas i. 220 A prince imposed To let or loose their rains, as he commands. 1697Dryden Virg. Georg. iv. 586 The slipp'ry God will try to loose his hold. 1737Whiston Josephus, Hist. vi. viii. §4 Their nerves were so terribly loosed..they could not flee away. 1865Lightfoot Galatians (1874) 118/2 Sin and law loose their hold at the same time. 1868Browning Ring & Bk. v. 822 He bid them loose grasp. 1875W. S. Hayward Love agst. World 18 ‘Loose your hold of the lady's bridle’, cried Walter. 1901Methuen Peace or War S. Africa vii. 158 He will know when to loose and when to tighten the rein.
†b. transf. To relax or loosen (the bowels). Also absol. Obs.
c1400Lanfranc's Cirurg. 51 Þou maist..lose þe wombe if þat he be costif. 1528Paynel Salerne's Regim. (1541) 77 The brothe of coole wortes..leuseth the bealy. Ibid. 87 Blacke pepper throughe the heate and drynes therof, leuseth quickely. 1533Elyot Cast. Helth ii. vii. (1541) 20 b, Soure grapes are colde, and do also lowse, but they are harde of dygestyon. 1612Woodall Surg. Mate Wks. (1653) 187 It is dangerous to loose the belly upon a former loosenesse. 1651Wittie Primrose's Pop. Err. i. 58 If their bellies be but abundantly loosed.
†7.
a. [Cf. L. solvere.] To break up, dissolve, do away with. Chiefly fig. Obs.
1340Hampole Pr. Consc. 1792 Þe dede..louses alle thyng And of ilk mans lif mas endyng. 1387Trevisa Higden (Rolls) VII. 149 Whos chirche dissolved and lowsed þoruȝ longe rotnes he reparailde. 1435Misyn Fire of Love ii. ix. 91 Þat frenschyp þat is kyndely sal not be lausyd. 1526Pilgr. Perf. (W. de W. 1531) 15 It dissolueth and loseth all vowes. 1530Palsgr. 688/1, I resolve, I lose thynges, or melte them, or parte thynges asonder, je resolue. 1819Shelley Cenci i. ii. 23 By assuming vows no Pope will loose.
†b. intr. To crumble away; to dissolve, melt.
c1375Sc. Leg. Saints xlv. (Cristine) 234 Til þe fals ydol don can fal, & in poudre lousyt al smal. 1481Caxton Myrr. ii. xxvii. 120 The moisture..is in thayer assembled and amassed..And the sonne causeth it to lose and to falle on therthe.
†8. To break (faith); to violate (a peace). Obs.
13..Gaw. & Gr. Knt. 1784 If ȝe..folden fayth to þat fre, festned so harde, Þat yow lausen ne lyst. 1456Sir G. Haye Law Arms (S.T.S.) 149 The man..may nocht lous his faith. 1568Grafton Chron. II. 309 By reason whereof the peace betwene them agreed might be losed or broken.
†9. To solve, explain. Obs.
1596Spenser F.Q. v. xi. 25 He had red her Riddle, which no wight Could ever loose but suffred deadly doole. 1660R. Coke Justice Vind., Arts & Sci. 1 This doubt is after⁓wards loosed by Aristotle himself.
10. a. To redeem, release or obtain by payment; to pay for. Sc. Hence perh. Coverdale's use: † To buy (obs.).
1473Ld. Treas. Acc. Scotl. (1877) I. 48 Item to Dauid Quhytehede and Thome of Stanly..for Doctor Andres dispensacione lousyt be thaim in Bruges xvjli. 1500Ibid. (1900) II. 98 Item,..to Jacob lutar to lows his lute that lay in wed xxxijs. 1504–5Ibid. (1901) III. 127 To Alexander Kers to lous the Kingis stope quhilk wes tane quhen he wes Abbot of Unreson vjli xiijs. iiijd. 1535Coverdale Jer. xxxii. 25 That I shall loose a pece of londe vnto my self. 1824Scott St. Ronan's ii, As for the letters at the post⁓mistress's—they may bide in her shop-window—till Beltane, or I louse them. 1825–80Jamieson, To Louse.., to pay for; as, ‘Gie me siller to louse my coals at the hill’.
†b. Sc. To free (an estate) from incumbrance.
1494Acta Dom. Conc. (1839) 361/2 Or the landis war lowsit, quhilkis are now lowsit.
11. Sc. Law. To withdraw (an arrestment).
1522Extracts Aberd. Reg. (1844) I. 100 The arrest laid one the gudes aboune writin be Patrik Leslie... And the said Patrik offerit the said gudis, and the rest maid thar one to be loussit, incontinent thar findand souerty [etc.]. 1544Ibid. I. 205 The said day, Thomas Menzeis, provest of Aberdene..hes lowsit the arrestment made vpoun ane scheip, and certane tymmer being thairin, pertening to Robert Patersoune and vtheris. 1609Skene Reg. Maj. 75 b, The moueable gudes of the defender, sould be first attached, and arreisted, vntill he finde securitie be pledges, to compeir and answere to the complainer; and then the arreistment sould be lowsed. 1681Visct. Stair Instit. Law Scot. iii. i. (1693) 373 When he whose Goods or Sums are arrested, findeth Caution, and thereby louseth the Arrestment. a1768Erskine Instit. iii. vi. §12 (1773) I. 509.
12. pass. and intr. To finish working; (of a school, factory, etc.) to close, disperse, ‘break up’. Also in phr. loose-all, the signal to stop work given in the pits. dial.
a1813Wilson Maggie Weir (E.D.D.), Ploughman chields lous'd frae their wark. 1829Hogg Sheph. Cal. I. vi. 151 He wad hear it [a song] every day when the school looses. 1851Greenwell Coal-trade Terms Northumb. & Durh. 35 Loose (‘Lowse’)!—Finish working! 1893Snowden Tales Yorksh. Wolds 110 One Sunday afternoon just as the chapel had ‘loosed’. 1911D. H. Lawrence White Peacock vii. 485, I heard the far-off hooting of the ‘loose-all’ at the pits, telling me it was half-past eleven. 1913― Sons & Lovers ii. 30 Some men were there before four o'clock, when the whistle blew loose-all.
▪ IV. loose
obs. form or variant of lose, loss. |