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Definition of Loosen up
1. Verb. Cause to become unblocked. "The medicine unstuffed my nose in minutes!"
Generic synonyms: Disengage, Free
Specialized synonyms: Unblock
Antonyms: Stuff
2. Verb. Become less tense, less formal, or less restrained, and assume a friendlier manner. "Our new colleague relaxed when he saw that we were a friendly group"
3. Verb. Make one's body limber or suppler by stretching, as if to prepare for strenuous physical activity.
4. Verb. Become less tense, rest, or take one's ease. "Sam and Sue loosen up"; "Let's all relax after a hard day's work"
Specialized synonyms: Vege Out, Vegetate, Sit Back, Take It Easy
Generic synonyms: Change State, Turn
Derivative terms: Relaxant, Relaxation, Relaxation
Antonyms: Tense
5. Verb. Cause to feel relaxed. "The performance is likely to loosen up Sue"; "A hot bath always relaxes me"
Generic synonyms: Affect
Specialized synonyms: Unbend
Causes: Decompress, Relax, Slow Down, Unbend, Unwind
Derivative terms: Relaxant, Relaxant, Relaxation, Relaxer
Antonyms: Tense, Strain
Definition of Loosen up
1. Verb. (intransitive) to become loose; to loosen ¹
2. Verb. (colloquial) to relax, act less seriously. ¹
¹ Source: wiktionary.com
Lexicographical Neighbors of Loosen Up
Literary usage of Loosen up
Below you will find example usage of this term as found in modern and/or classical literature:
1. Sessional Papers by Ontario Legislative Assembly (1905)
"What is needed is to loosen up the roadway and screen out the dirt—then roll down
the clean metal. gerously high in the centre, making it difficult for ..."
2. The Bar Sinister by Richard Harding Davis (1903)
"The night I fought Kelley's White Rat, I wouldn't loosen up until the Master made
a noose in my leash and strangled me; and, ..."
3. From Harrison to Harding: A Personal Narrative, Covering a Third of a by Arthur Wallace Dunn (1922)
""It was my idea," he said, "that if I could get Clark to loosen up ... "What do
you mean by 'loosen up?'" asked Senator Burrows of Michigan, ..."
4. Transactions of the American Institute of Electrical Engineers by American Institute of Electrical Engineers (1917)
"If the percentage of mica in the insulation is relatively high and the mica is
put on so tightly that the binding material can disintegrate and loosen up ..."
5. The American State Reports: Containing the Cases of General Value and by Abraham Clark Freeman (1898)
"The defendant took the leg across his knee and tried to work it, and said if it
did not loosen up he would put the plaintiff under the influence of ether ..."