shoestring
shoe·string/ˈʃustɹɪŋ/noun, adjective, verb
shoestring is spelled S-H-O-E-S-T-R-I-N-G: 10 letters and 2 syllables (shoe·string). It appears about once in every 2 million words in written English, the 44,209th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, shoestring means “The string or lace used to secure a shoe to the foot; a shoelace” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of shoestring is shoestrings.
How many letters and syllables are in shoestring?
| Letters | 10: S-H-O-E-S-T-R-I-N-G |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2: shoe·string |
| In writing | about once in every 2 million words; the 44,209th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is shoestring?
Shoestring appears about once in every 2 million words in written English, the 44,209th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce shoestring?
- UK /ˈʃuːstɹɪŋ/
- US /ˈʃustɹɪŋ/
Shoestring has 2 syllables, split shoe·string in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-AcpoKrane-shoestring.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of shoestring
- shoestrings plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- shoestringing participle, present
- shoestringed participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does shoestring mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
USThe string or lace used to secure a shoe to the foot; a shoelace.
Your shoestring is untied.
- 2
An object that is long and thin, like a shoestring (sense 1).
- 3
A long, narrow cut of a food; a julienne.
shoestring French fries
- 4
Chiefly in on a shoestring: very little money; a tight budget.
He was able to organize the event on a shoestring.
adjective
- 1
USOf a catch or tackle: made near the ground, close to a player's shoes.
verb
- 1
To tackle (a player) using a shoestring tackle (“one made near the ground, close to a player's shoes”).
- 2
To catch (a ball) using a shoestring catch (“one made near the ground, close to a player's shoes”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Shoestring in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense long, narrow cut of a food – see also julienne:
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does shoestring come from?
The noun is derived from shoe + string. The adjective is derived from the noun, while the verb is derived from terms such as shoestring catch and shoestring tackle.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).