What does "purse" mean?
A small bag for carrying money.
Purse
/pɜːs/ name, noun, verb
name, noun, verb ·Common ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A small bag for carrying money.
- Grammar: purse is listed as name, noun, verb.
- Nearest alternatives: bag, handbag, pocketbook, abbreviate.
- Useful contrasts: attache, carryall, debt.
- Usage evidence: I had my purse and commutation ticket stolen while I was sleeping on the train.
How to use "purse"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "purse" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "purse" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "purse" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "purse" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "purse" is acting as name, noun, verb in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "bag" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "purse", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A small bag for carrying money.
"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."
- 2 a container used for carrying money and small personal items or accessories (especially by women) wordnet
- 3 A handbag (small bag usually used by women for carrying various small personal items) US
"Master leathercrafter does handcrafted wallets, belts, purses, handbags etc., supporting self and helpers. Good enough to carve fantst art and portraits into leather."
- 4 a small bag for carrying money wordnet
- 5 A quantity of money given for a particular purpose.
"It was a historic and a hefty battle when Myler and Percy were scheduled to don the gloves for the purse of fifty sovereigns."
Show 3 more definitions
- 6 a sum of money offered as a prize wordnet
- 7 A specific sum of money in certain countries: formerly 500 piastres in Turkey or 50 tomans in Persia. historical
- 8 a sum of money spoken of as the contents of a money purse wordnet
Verb
- 1 To press (one's lips) in and together so that they protrude. transitive
"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."
- 2 contract one's lips into a rounded shape wordnet
- 3 To draw up or contract into folds or wrinkles; to pucker; to knit.
"[…] thou […] didst contract and purse thy brow together, / As if thou then hadst shut up in thy brain / Some horrible conceit: […]"
- 4 gather or contract into wrinkles or folds; pucker wordnet
- 5 To put into a purse.
"And I will go and purse the ducats straight,"
Show 1 more definition
- 6 To steal purses; to rob. intransitive, obsolete, rare
"Why I'll purse; if that raise me not, I'll bet at bowling alleys, or man whores: I would fain live by others."
Proper Noun
- 1 A surname from Middle English.
Synonyms
All synonymsExample
"I had my purse and commutation ticket stolen while I was sleeping on the train."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "purse"?
Common synonyms include: bag, handbag, pocketbook, abbreviate, and pence, assets.
How do you use "purse" in a sentence?
I had my purse and commutation ticket stolen while I was sleeping on the train.
How do you pronounce "purse"?
Pronounced /pɜːs/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
From Middle English purs, from Old English purs (“purse”), partly from pusa (“wallet, bag, scrip”) and partly from burse (“pouch, bag”). Old English pusa comes from Proto-West Germanic *pusō, from Proto-Germanic *pusô (“bag, sack, scrip”), and is cognate with Old High German pfoso (“pouch, purse”), Low German pūse (“purse, bag”), Old Norse posi (“purse, bag”), Danish pose (“purse, bag”), Dutch beurs (“purse, bag”). Old English burse comes from Medieval Latin bursa (“leather bag”) (compare English bursar), from Ancient Greek βύρσα (búrsa, “hide, wine-skin”). Compare also Old French borse (French bourse), Old Saxon bursa (“bag”), Old High German burissa (“wallet”).
Etymology 2
A metonymic occupational surname for someone who made bags or purses, from Middle English purse.