at loose ends
Proposed by a contributor, not yet supported by evidence.
Meaning · English
Without a plan or purpose, feeling idle or uncertain
Nghĩa · Tiếng Việt
Không có kế hoạch hoặc mục đích, cảm thấy nhàn rỗi hoặc không chắc chắn
Machine-translated — suggest a fix
Literally: threads or strings hanging loose
Where it’s used:
Used
Widespread English
Examples
After quitting her job, she felt at loose ends
AI-drafted example auto-approved by rule (illustrative, not a corpus attestation)
Sources & notes
Listed in Wiktionary’s “English idioms” category (retrieved 2026-07-29); definition pending editorial review. Definition drafted by AI (@cf/meta/llama-3.3-70b-instruct-fp8-fast) and auto-approved by rule on 2026-07-30; pending editor spot-check.
Common questions
What does “at loose ends” mean?
Without a plan or purpose, feeling idle or uncertain Literally: threads or strings hanging loose
Is “at loose ends” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.