PURSE
What does "PURSE" mean?
A small pouch or bag for carrying money and personal items.
Meanings
- A small bag or pouch for carrying money. She fished in her purse for exact change.
- A woman's handbag. He grabbed her purse off the chair as they left. informal
- A sum of money offered as a prize, especially in boxing or racing. The title fight carried a record purse.
- To pucker or draw together, especially the lips. She pursed her lips and said nothing.
Did you know?
- A bursar, a stock exchange (bourse), and reimbursing a friend all trace back through 'purse' to the Greek 'byrsa' - the word for an animal hide stitched into a money bag.
Word origin
From Old English 'purs', from Late Latin 'bursa' meaning 'hide, leather bag', from Greek 'byrsa' (hide); the same root gives us 'bursar' and 'reimburse'.
Remember it
PURSE: Personal Use, Receipts, Spare Euros - what a purse holds.
A little poem
The clasp clicks shut on coins and lint and keys-
a small mouth holding all the day's small needs.
couplet
Wordplay
- Why did the boxer carry a wallet to the title match? He heard the winner takes the purse.
What it teaches
What you carry close says more about your worries than your wealth.
Quick facts
What does PURSE mean?
A small pouch or bag for carrying money and personal items.
Is PURSE a valid word?
Yes — PURSE is one of the answer words in Wordul, the daily word game.
How many letters is PURSE?
PURSE has 5 letters and 1 syllable.
Where does PURSE come from?
From Old English 'purs', from Late Latin 'bursa' meaning 'hide, leather bag', from Greek 'byrsa' (hide); the same root gives us 'bursar' and 'reimburse'.
What can PURSE teach us?
What you carry close says more about your worries than your wealth.
How players do
Be the first to solve it.