Word.ws English Dictionary

gave one enough rope

gave one enough rope is the simple past of give someone enough rope.

Meaning of give someone enough rope

Verb

give someone enough rope (third-person singular simple present gives someone enough rope, present participle giving someone enough rope, simple past gave someone enough rope, past participle given someone enough rope)

  1. (idiomatic) To allow one to function unhindered, or without further overbearing oversight.
    • Near-synonym: cut someone some slack
  2. (idiomatic) To allow an enemy to function unhindered in the belief that they will end up harming or discrediting themself.

Questions about gave one enough rope

What is gave one enough rope the simple past of?
Gave one enough rope is the simple past of give someone enough rope.

Words near gave one enough rope in the dictionary

  1. gave neck
  2. gave notice
  3. gave of oneself
  4. gave off
  5. gave one a yell
  6. gave one enough rope
  7. gave one the lie in one's throat
  8. gave one the mitten
  9. gave one's all
  10. gave one's best
  11. gave one's head a shake

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: gave one enough rope (page history and authors); give someone enough rope (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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