hold the purse strings
To be in control of spending; to have financial power and responsibility.
Meaning adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
“My mother holds the purse strings in our house.”
“The board of directors holds the purse strings, so we must ask them for permission to increase our budget.”
“Although the department head manages the daily operations, the chief financial officer ultimately holds the purse strings for all major corporate investments.”
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another string to one's bow
Another skill, ability or resource to be used in case of failure.
- 02
apron string
A symbol of the domestic ties binding a male to a female (as a husband to a wife or a son to a mother).
- 03
apron-string hold
An estate held by a man during his wife's life.
- 04
buy and hold
A passive investment strategy where an investor purchases an asset and retains it for many years, rather than trading it frequently.
- 05
common purse
A shared or community fund.
- 06
cut one's cloth to suit one's purse
To settle for less when money or resources are limited.
- 07
don't hold your breath
Don't wait. Said cynically to suggest that what has just been mentioned is unlikely to happen soon or at all.
- 08
harp on one string
To dwell on a single subject with disagreeable or wearisome persistence.
Last updated August 10, 2026