purse
/pɜːs/ noun [C] FINANCEDefinition
› [usually singular] the total amount of money that a person, organization, or government has available to spend: Having a lot of people out of work places a large drain on the public purse. The motor company sought to sell 'a car for every purse'.
› an amount of money that is offered as a prize in a sports competition: The sponsorship deal includes a €10,000 purse for the winner of the tournament. → See also electronic purse
hold/control the purse strings › to be in charge of a family's or organization's money and responsible for deciding what it will be spent on: She is the typical Japanese housewife who controls the family's purse strings.
loosen the purse strings › to spend more money or to allow people to have or spend more money: He might even persuade the board to loosen the purse strings.
tighten the purse strings › to spend less money or to allow people to have or spend less money: When a company needs to tighten the purse strings, outside labor is the first to get cut.
(Definition of purse noun from the Cambridge Business English Dictionary
© Cambridge University Press)
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