let loose

[ let loos ]

idiom

past and past participle: let loosepresent participle: letting loose

1. to set free; release;

   They let the captured mouse loose in a field.

2. to allow to act freely (often followed by on ):

   I have my medical students practice putting IVs in me before I let them loose on patients.

3. to act in a relaxed or uninhibited way:

   It took some time to talk my dad into letting loose and playing a few games with the grandkids.

   I can be serious when I need to be, but sometimes I just need to let loose and have fun.

4. to utter or issue forcefully and suddenly (sometimes followed by with ):

   I let loose a shriek and made a dive for the door.

   He let loose with a flurry of angry posts on the website.

5. to give way; yield:

   The guardrail let loose and we very nearly plunged over the edge.

Example Sentences

"What we're most concerned about is that you've got a big increase in numbers of PAs who don't have the depth of understanding because of their background, and who are going to be let loose on the public without adequate supervision."

From BBC

It also launched covert ops against reporters and let loose a secret army of online trolls.

From Slate

Two drives later, Moss let loose another deep ball, only for it to sail too far inside of wideout Zachariah Branch.

From Los Angeles Times

After he let loose with another round of lies about January 6, she said, "perhaps we do not have, in the candidate to my right, the temperament or the ability to not be confused about fact."

From Salon

For instance, when Trump was recently asked about childcare policy, he let loose with, "I think when you talk about the kind of numbers that I’m talking about . . . child care is child care. You have to have it — in this country you have to have it," before going into a rant about tariffs.

From Salon

Related Words

• acquit
• clear
• discharge
• dismiss
• extricate
• pardon
• parole
• release
• relieve
• rescue
• save