IdiomTopic: money

tighten your belt

/ˌtaɪtn jɔː ˈbelt/NEUTRAL · C2

Meaning

to spend less money than before

Examples

1After losing his job, he had to tighten his belt.
2The club tightened its belt by cancelling the annual dinner.
3With my rent going up, I must tighten my belt and cancel a few subscriptions.
4The council is tightening its belt: three expensive projects have already been cancelled.
5Until their wages recover, the workers must tighten their belts and avoid unnecessary purchases.

Grammar

Match the possessive to the subject. Plural subjects commonly take belts; the verb changes tense.

Similar in meaning

make ends meet strapped for cash

More idioms about money

All 20 idioms and the topic quiz →

pay through the noseto pay far too much for something save for a rainy dayto keep money for future problems in the redowing money or losing money in the blackhaving more income than expenses a cash cowa reliable source of profit bring home the baconto earn money to support a family

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