Green’s Dictionary of Slang

1. (UK und.) the hangman’s noose.

1690		‘Teague’ Teagueland Jests I 11: One of dem wash sho kind to come shave me, or to tauke de String from mee Neck.
1732		Progress of a Rake 53: Thus like a Hero Dick did swing, / A prettier Spark ne’er grac’d a String.

2. a hoax, a fraud [string (along) v. (1a)].

1812		Vaux Vocab. of the Flash Lang.
1821		Egan Life in London (1869) 202: His plausibility of attack is generally so well managed, that strangers are got ‘into a string’ before they are aware of their danger.
1832		Egan Bk of Sports 3: It was a perfect treat to hear him get the johnny raws ‘in a string’.
1848		Paul Pry 13 Nov. n.p.: [S]he ought to be ashamed of herself for attempting to commit bigamy, having got a young fellow into a tidy string.
1851		‘Pertaters and Ternups’ in Burke Polly Peablossom’s Wedding 92: Of course Mabe was innocent of the ‘string’.
1856		Bell’s Life in Sydney 19 Jan. 2/7: Mrs O'Brien [...] thinking Jones only wanted to ‘get her in a string,’ [...] treated him with sovereign contempt.
1900		A.H. Lewis ‘The Rat’ in Sandburrs 110: Of course it’s a dead case of string.
1907		N.Y. Tribune 13 Jan. 15/2: He must be an orginal old Rube — just you watch me get him on a string.
1910		Truth (Perth) 1 Oct. 4/7: The ‘finger’ who will get you / ‘On a string’ / Is a ‘josser’ who has likely / ‘Had a fling’ .
1914		Bulletin (Sydney) 20 Aug. Red Page/1: Then sittin’ tight w’en darncin’s ud its fling, / En kiddin’ to yerself yer jist the one – / Until some screwin’, crook son uv a gun / The cliner grabs, en’ show yer’ve ’ad a string.

3. a condition, restriction.

1822		D. Carey Life in Paris 47: Suppose the old string still teazes you a little – never mind, they can’t live forever.
1834		‘Of All The Blowings On The Town’ in Flash Chaunter 5: When Sessions comes about again, / O then I shall be free, sir, / And when I come out with the string, / My Sal again I’ll see, sir.
1888		Battle Creek Weekly Journal 15 Feb. n.p.: Bob Ingersoll Says There Is a String to It [DA].
1932		Z. Grey Robbers’ Roost 20: Any strings on a loan?
1936		J. Curtis Gilt Kid 13: A sinister figure will sidle up to him in the darkness and, in broken English, will offer him a whole lot of dough. But there will be a string tied to that flock of rent. The hero has to earn it.
1949		Sierra Club Bulletin Jan. 4/1: The Corporation [...] made its offer to California—an offer good for six months only, and having several untenable strings attached [DA].
1979		F. Norman Too Many Crooks Spoil the Caper 34: The string was that both the bank and the manufacturers were going to end up knocked.

4. (US Und.) a form of confidence trick.

1885		Bulletin (Sydney) 5 Sept. 26/1: A hardshell Gospel-purveyer has had the Briagolong (Gippsland, Vic.) people on the baptism-by-water string.
1895		C. Crowe Aus. Sl. Dict. 82: String,‘on a string,’ to humbug; to‘get on a line’.
1897		E.W. Townsend Chimmie Fadden 4: Say, I could have give him a string bout me being a hard-working boy, but I knowed de lady was dead on t’ me.
1905		H. Green Actors’ Boarding House (1906) 204: When I begin on a string I like to play it out.
1909		J. Washburn Und. Sewer 208: She keeps him on the string, and exchanges ‘con’ for coin until he is badly bent, if not broke.
1937		(con. 1905–25) E.H. Sutherland Professional Thief (1956) 69: Many other short-con games have been played, including the gold-brick, the sick engineer, the glim-dropper, dropping the fiddle, the gaffed chiv, the strap, the string (a variation of the string), the two red aces (a card game), and the match box.

5. in racing, the finishing line.

1906

Sun (NY) 9 Sept. 3/2: He’ll sail down to the string like a Cingalese tea bark.

6. (US Und.) a fuse, as used for detonation when ‘blowing’ a safe.

1909		F.H. Tillotson How I Became a Detective 95: String – Fuse.
1914		Jackson & Hellyer Vocab. Criminal Sl.
1914		Wash. Post 11 Nov. Misc. 3/6: ‘String’ in the argot of the road, is translated into fuse.
1924		G. Henderson Keys to Crookdom 419: String. Fuse used by yeggs in safeblowing.
1950		Goldin et al. DAUL 214/1: String. (Obs.) 1. Fuse for exploding percussion cap in safe burglary. 2. The lead wire from the electric socket to the percussion cap in safe burglary.

7. (US) a woman’s lovers [SE string, a set or stud of horses].

1929

D. Hammett Red Harvest (1965) 20: ‘"How about Dan Rolff’ he asked [...] He lives with her. She keeps him.’ ‘Any more?’ ‘There was that radical chap she used to run around with [. . . .]’ ‘She seems to have had everybody on her string at one time or another,’ I said.

8. (also string of ponies) a group of prostitutes working for a single pimp; also used of non-commercial groups of women (see cite 2023) [see prev.].

[c.1780		Entire New List of the Sporting Ladies [broadsheet] From the other side of the Tweed are likewise come a numerous String of Brimstones].
1950		Goldin et al. DAUL 214/1: String of hustlers. A group of prostitutes operating for the same house or syndicate. ‘Broadway Al’s got a string of hustlers. That’s where his dough comes from.’.
1963		in T.I. Rubin Sweet Daddy 9: I’ve had chicks on my string – hardly ever had themselves a piece.
1984		Partridge DSUE (8th edn) 1168/1: string of ponies A ‘stable’ of prostitutes ‘owned’ by one man [...] since ca. 1925.
2021		J. Ellroy Widespread Panic 65: Vampira went lez [...] she was running a lez string out of Googie’s.
2023		(con. 1962) J. Ellroy Enchanters 142: Zanuck’s got X number of young talent on his string.

9. (US) the penis; thus string and nuggets, the penis and testicles.

1967–8		C. Bukowski Notes of a Dirty Old Man (1973) 27: I undressed [...] and began dabbing at the string and knobs.
2001		‘SexKitten_Candy’ EliteFitness.com Forum 26 Aug. 🌐 strap / stretcher / string and nuggets / stud.

10. (US black) the take from one night’s worth of a prostitute’s clients.

1971

R.D. Pharr S.R.O. (1998) 132: ‘Supposing tonight I make a two-hundred-dollar string?’.

11. (US und.) a team of criminals, e.g. bank-robbers.

2012

T. Piccirilli Last Kind Words 27: [He] was known for souping up stolen cars for strings putting together bank heists. He’d fine-tune engines until they sang.