loosen, relax, loose
(verb) become loose or looser or less tight; “The noose loosened”; “the rope relaxed”
loosen, loose
(verb) make loose or looser; “loosen the tension on a rope”
loosen
(verb) make less dense; “loosen the soil”
untie, undo, loosen
(verb) cause to become loose; “undo the shoelace”; “untie the knot”; “loosen the necktie”
tease, tease apart, loosen
(verb) disentangle and raise the fibers of; “tease wool”
relax, loosen
(verb) become less severe or strict; “The rules relaxed after the new director arrived”
relax, loosen
(verb) make less severe or strict; “The government relaxed the curfew after most of the rebels were caught”
Source: WordNet® 3.1
loosen (third-person singular simple present loosens, present participle loosening, simple past and past participle loosened)
(transitive) To make loose.
Synonyms: ease, relax, untighten
(intransitive) To become loose.
(transitive) To disengage (a device that restrains).
Synonyms: undo, unfasten
(intransitive) To become unfastened or undone.
(transitive) To free from restraint; to set at liberty.
Synonyms: liberate, release, set free
(transitive) To relieve (the bowels) from constipation; to promote defecation.
(transitive, obsolete) To create a breach or rift between (two parties).
(intransitive, obsolete) To sail away (from the shore).
Synonym: put out
• tighten
• no-lose
Source: Wiktionary
Loos"en, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Loosened; p. pr. & vb. n. Loosening.] Etym: [See Loose, v. t.]
1. To make loose; to free from tightness, tension, firmness, or fixedness; to make less dense or compact; as, to loosen a string, or a knot; to loosen a rock in the earth. After a year's rooting, then shaking doth the tree good by loosening of the earth. Bacon.
2. To free from restraint; to set at liberty.. It loosens his hands, and assists his understanding. Dryden.
3. To remove costiveness from; to facilitate or increase the alvine discharges of. Bacon.
Loos"en, v. i.
Definition: To become loose; to become less tight, firm, or compact. S. Sharp.
Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition
8 May 2025
(noun) the act of protecting something by surrounding it with material that reduces or prevents the transmission of sound or heat or electricity
The Boston Tea Party helped popularize coffee in America. The hefty tea tax imposed on the colonies in 1773 resulted in America switching from tea to coffee. In the lead up to the Revolutionary War, it became patriotic to sip java instead of tea. The Civil War made the drink more pervasive. Coffee helped energize tired troops, and drinking it became an expression of freedom.
