loose

/lus/

/lus/

Other forms: loosed; looser; loosing; loosest; looses

If something is loose, it's not attached very securely to anything. Be sure the horse trailer attached to your truck isn't loose, or it might just roll away on its own while you're on the highway.

Loose means "not fixed." We can use it for things that you physically attach, like doorknobs or buttons, or for ideas that aren't rigid. If someone has loose morals, they don't have a strong moral code. A floppy dancer has loose limbs, and a loose ball is one that no one's holding. It's also a verb. To loose something is to set it free, which is different from losing it. You loose the wild squirrel you nursed back to health.

Definitions of loose

1. adjective

   not affixed
   “the stamp came loose”

   synonyms: unaffixed
2. adjective

   having escaped, especially from confinement
   “dogs loose on the streets”

   “criminals on the loose in the neighborhood”

   synonyms: at large, escaped, on the loose

   free

   able to act at will; not hampered; not under compulsion or restraint
3. adjective

   (of a ball in sport) not in the possession or control of any player
   “a loose ball”

   synonyms:

   uncontrolled

   not being under control; out of control
4. verb

   turn loose or free from restraint
   “Loose terrible plagues upon humanity”

   synonyms: let loose, unleash

   type of:

   let go, let go of, release, relinquish

   release, as from one's grip
5. verb

   grant freedom to; free from confinement
   synonyms: free, liberate, release, unloose, unloosen

   types:

   unspell

   release from a spell

   unchain

   make free

   bail

   release after a security has been paid

   run

   set animals loose to graze

   bail out

   free on bail

   parole

   release a criminal from detention and place him on parole
6. adverb

   without restraint
   “cows in India are running loose”

   synonyms: free
7. adjective

   not compact or dense in structure or arrangement
   “loose gravel”

   synonyms:

   light

   (used of soil) loose and large-grained in consistency

   shifting, unfirm

   (of soil) unstable

   silty

   full of silt

   unconsolidated

   loose and unstratified

   antonyms:

   compact

   closely and firmly united or packed together

   clayey, cloggy, heavy

   (used of soil) compact and fine-grained

   close-packed

   packed especially tightly

   consolidated

   forming a solid mass

   impacted, wedged

   wedged or packed in together

   packed

   pressed together or compressed

   serried

   (especially of rows as of troops or mountains) pressed together

   tight

   packed closely together

   concentrated

   gathered together or made less diffuse
8. adjective

   not carefully arranged in a package
   “a box of loose nails”

   synonyms:

   unpackaged

   not packaged or put into packets
9. adjective

   (of textures) full of small openings or gaps
   “a loose weave”

   synonyms: open

   coarse, harsh

   of textures that are rough to the touch or substances consisting of relatively large particles
10. adjective

    not tense or taut
    “the old man's skin hung loose and grey”

    synonyms: slack

    lax

    lacking in strength or firmness or resilience
11. adjective

    not tight; not closely constrained or constricted or constricting
    “loose clothing”

    “the large shoes were very loose”

    synonyms:

    baggy, loose-fitting, sloppy

    not fitting closely; hanging loosely

    flyaway

    (of hair or clothing) worn loose

    lax

    lacking in strength or firmness or resilience

    antonyms:

    tight

    closely constrained or constricted or constricting

    tight

    of such close construction as to be impermeable

    choky

    so tight as to tend to choke

    clenched, clinched

    closed or squeezed together tightly

    close, close-fitting, snug

    fitting closely but comfortably

    skin-tight, skintight

    so tight as to cling to the skin

    skinny, tight fitting, tight-fitting, tightfitting, tightly fitting

    fitting snugly

    viselike

    clamped as in a vise

    tense

    taut or rigid; stretched tight
12. verb

    make loose or looser
    synonyms: loosen

    types:

    relax, unbend

    make less taut

    remit, slacken

    make slack as by lessening tension or firmness

    slack

    release tension on

    unscrew

    loosen something by unscrewing it

    unscrew

    loosen by turning

    unbrace

    remove from tension

    douse, dowse

    slacken

    type of:

    alter, change, modify

    cause to change; make different; cause a transformation
13. verb

    become loose or looser or less tight
    synonyms: loosen, relax

    type of:

    weaken

    become weaker
14. adjective

    not officially recognized or controlled
    “a loose organization of the local farmers”

    synonyms: informal

    unofficial

    not having official authority or sanction
15. adjective

    not literal
    “a loose interpretation of what she had been told”

    synonyms: free, liberal

    inexact

    not exact
16. adjective

    lacking a sense of restraint or responsibility
    “a loose tongue”

    synonyms: idle

    irresponsible

    showing lack of care for consequences
17. adjective

    casual and unrestrained in sexual behavior
    synonyms: easy, light, promiscuous, sluttish, wanton

    unchaste

    not chaste
18. adjective

    emptying easily or excessively
    “loose bowels”

    synonyms: lax

    regular, unconstipated

    not constipated