purse
Americannoun
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Also called change purse. a small bag, pouch, or case for carrying money.
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anything resembling a purse in appearance, use, etc.
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a sum of money offered as a prize or reward.
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a sum of money collected as a present or the like.
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money, resources, or wealth.
verb (used with object)
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to contract into folds or wrinkles; pucker.
to purse one's lips.
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to put into a purse.
noun
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a small bag or pouch, often made of soft leather, for carrying money, esp coins
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a woman's handbag
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anything resembling a small bag or pouch in form or function
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wealth; funds
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a sum of money that is offered, esp as a prize
verb
Other Word Forms
- purseless adjective
- purselike adjective
Etymology
Origin of purse
First recorded before 1100; (noun) Middle English, Old English purs, blend of pusa “bag” (cognate with Old Norse posi ) and Medieval Latin bursa “bag” (ultimately from Greek býrsa “hide, leather”); (verb) Middle English pursen “to put in a purse,” derivative of the noun
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
She’d stood over him the entire time, her eyes narrowed and mouth pursed into a thin line, and the kid had practically shrunk five inches by the time it was all over.
From Literature
But factors such as the flagging property market, deflation and youth unemployment have left consumers tightening their purse strings.
From Barron's
Insp Alan King, of Police Scotland, said the vandalism had caused great expense to the "public purse" while councils were "bearing what are harsh economic times".
From BBC
While this purse string model applies broadly, it does not explain division in species with especially large embryonic cells, including sharks, platypus, birds and reptiles.
From Science Daily
Each time a rap sounded her expression changed—lips pursed? eyes narrowed?
From Literature
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
