| Idiom | On a Shoestring |
|---|---|
| Example | They tried to start a school band on a shoestring. |
| Meaning | on a strict budget; with or using very little money |
| Origin | No one today is quite sure about the origin of this idiom, although we know it started in America in the late 1800s. A "shoestring" is what we call a shoelace today. Perhaps the writer who first used this expression was comparing a tiny amount of money with a piece of string like a shoelace. |
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