Example
“The finance director holds the purse strings, so every large purchase needs her approval.”
Dictionary details
Related idioms
Expressions connected by reviewed component words or topic tags.
pull the plug
Informal · CEFR B1
to stop funding or supporting something, ending it abruptly
carrot and stick
Neutral · CEFR B2
a strategy that uses both incentives and penalties to steer behavior
force someone's hand
Neutral · CEFR B2
To pressure someone into acting, often sooner than they had planned.
free rein
Neutral · CEFR B2
complete freedom to make choices or act without interference
play for time
Neutral · CEFR B2
to delay deliberately in order to prepare or avoid an immediate outcome
rule the roost
Neutral · CEFR B2
To hold the most power in a household, organization, or other group and make the main decisions.
Source methodology
Meanings, register, CEFR, and examples come from the reviewed dictionary record. Expression notes may describe a reviewed present-day word picture or a background note; they are not presented as verified etymology.