string someone along

Meaning

To string someone along means to deliberately lead someone to believe something that is not true, especially by giving them false hope about a romantic relationship or future commitment. It involves keeping someone waiting or interested while having no intention of fulfilling their expectations. The tone is highly critical and negative.

Examples

• He doesn't want to marry her; he's just stringing her along until someone else comes.

  He doesn't want to marry her; he's just stringing her along until someone else comes.

• I realized she was stringing me along when she kept making excuses not to meet up.

  I realized she was stringing me along when she kept making excuses not to meet up.

• Stop stringing him along if you don't actually have feelings for him.

  Stop stringing him along if you don't actually have feelings for him.

• She kept stringing me along for months, promising we would go public with our relationship.

  She kept stringing me along for months, promising we would go public with our relationship.

• I felt terrible when I realized I had been stringing him along just because I was lonely.

  I felt terrible when I realized I had been stringing him along just because I was lonely.

Common Mistakes

• ✗ He is stringing along her.

  ✓ He is stringing her along.

  'String along' is a separable phrasal verb. Pronoun objects (me, you, him, her, us, them) must go between 'string' and 'along'.

• ✗ She stringed me along for months.

  ✓ She strung me along for months.

  The past tense of 'string' is 'strung', not 'stringed'.

Related Expressions

Practice

• If you don't love him, don't ___.

  💡 lead him on with false hope

  Show answer

  string him along

• I can't believe she ___ for a year before telling me she was married.

  💡 kept me waiting with false hopes (past tense)

  Show answer

  strung me along