Meaning

A small bag for carrying money..

Definitions by Sense

1. A small bag for carrying money.
2. (US) A handbag (small bag usually used by women for carrying various small personal items)
3. A quantity of money given for a particular purpose.
4. (historical) A specific sum of money in certain countries: formerly 500 piastres in Turkey or 50 tomans in Persia.
5. (transitive) To press (one's lips) in and together so that they protrude.
6. To draw up or contract into folds or wrinkles; to pucker; to knit.
7. To put into a purse.
8. (intransitive, obsolete, rare) To steal purses; to rob.

Example Sentences

And then muſt many a man occupie as farre as his purſe would reache, and ſtretche out his legges accordynge to the length of his couerlet.

Master leathercrafter does handcrafted wallets, belts, purses, handbags etc., supporting self and helpers. Good enough to carve fantst art and portraits into leather.

It was a historic and a hefty battle when Myler and Percy were scheduled to don the gloves for the purse of fifty sovereigns.

1901, Matilde Serao, The Land of Cockayne, translator not credited, London: Heinemann, Chapter IV, p. 72, https://archive.org/details/landofcockayne00seraiala The serving Sister pursed up her lips to remind him of the cloistral rule, almost as if she wanted to prevent any conversation between him and the nun.

1916, Leonid Andreyev, "An Original" in The Little Angel and Other Stories, translated by W. H. Lowe, New York: Alfred Knopf, p. 85, https://archive.org/details/littleangelother00andriala Anton Ivanovich pursed up his lower lip so that his grey moustache pressed against the tip of his red pitted nose, took in all the officials with his rounded eyes, and after an unavoidable pause emitted a fat unctuous laugh.

When you're feeling in the dumps Don't be silly chumps Just purse your lips and whistle – that's the thing.

[…] Yidinj has just one prefix dja:- 'in the direction of' […]. There is a noun djawa 'mouth' in a number of neighbouring languages […] and it is likely that this developed into the prefix dja:-. The semantic motivation would be the fact that Aborigines typically indicate direction by pointing with pursed lips (in circumstances where Europeans would extend a hand or index finger).

[…] thou […] didst contract and purse thy brow together, / As if thou then hadst shut up in thy brain / Some horrible conceit: […]

Word Forms

• purses
• pursing
• pursed

Synonyms for purse

Related Words

When Should You Use Purse?

Use purse when its meaning, tone and grammar fit the full sentence. A synonym is not always a direct replacement.

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