string ( strings plural & 3rd person present) ( stringing present participle) ( strung past tense & past participle )
1 n-var String is thin rope made of twisted threads, used for tying things together or tying up parcels.
He held out a small bag tied with string., ...a shiny metallic coin on a string.
2 n-count A stringof things is a number of them on a piece of string, thread, or wire.
usu N of n
She wore a string of pearls around her neck., ...a string of fairy lights.
3 n-count A stringof places or objects is a number of them that form a line.
usu sing, usu N of n
The landscape is broken only by a string of villages..., A string of five rowing boats set out from the opposite bank.
4 n-count A stringof similar events is a series of them that happen one after the other.
usu sing, usu N of n
The incident was the latest in a string of attacks...
5 n-count The strings on a musical instrument such as a violin or guitar are the thin pieces of wire or nylon stretched across it that make sounds when the instrument is played.
He went off to change a guitar string., ...a twenty-one-string harp.
6 n-plural Thestrings are the section of an orchestra which consists of stringed instruments played with a bow.
oft N n
The strings provided a melodic background to the passages played by the soloist..., There was a 20-member string section.
7 n-count In computing, a string is a particular series of letters, numbers, symbols, or spaces, for example a word or phrase that you want to search for in a document.
8 verb If you string something somewhere, you hang it up between two or more objects.
He had strung a banner across the wall. V n prep/adv
String up means the same as string., phrasal verb
People were stringing up decorations on the fronts of their homes. V P n (not pron), Also V n P
10 If something is offered to you with no strings attached or with no strings, it is offered without any special conditions.
no strings/no strings attached phrase
Aid should be given to developing countries with no strings attached., ...no-strings grants that last for five years.
11 If you pull strings, you use your influence with other people in order to get something done, often unfairly.
pull strings phrase V inflects string along phrasal verb If you string someone along, you deceive them by letting them believe you have the same desires, beliefs, or hopes as them. INFORMAL She took advantage of him, stringing him along even after they were divorced. V n P string together phrasal verb If you string things together, you form something from them by adding them to each other, one at a time. As speech develops, the child starts to string more words together... V n P The speaker strung together a series of jokes. V P n (not pron) string up phrasal verb To string someone up means to kill them by hanging them. INFORMAL Guards rushed into his cell and strung him up. V n P, Also V P n (not pron)
G-string ( G-strings plural ) A G-string is a narrow band of cloth that is worn between a person's legs to cover his or her sexual organs, and that is held up by a narrow string round the waist. n-count
second string , second-string
If you describe a person or thing as someone's second string, you mean that they are only used if another person or thing is not available. n-sing oft N n
...a second string team.
string bean ( string beans plural )
1 n-count String beans are long, very narrow green vegetables consisting of the cases that contain the seeds of a climbing plant.
(AM) usu pl
in BRIT, use French beans
2 n-count String beans are vegetables similar to French beans, but thicker.
(BRIT) usu pl
string quartet ( string quartets plural )
1 n-count A string quartet is a group of four musicians who play stringed instruments together. The instruments are two violins, a viola, and a cello.
...a recital by the Borodin String Quartet.
2 n-count A string quartet is a piece of music played on two violins, a viola, and a cello.
...Dvorak's String Quartet Opus 34.