long leash

long leash

A phrase indicating that one is given a lot of independence or is not under very strict control by someone else. Her parents giver her quite a long leash, so it doesn't surprise me that she gets up to as much trouble as she does. They may be regretting the long leash they gave their candidate ahead of the campaign.
See also: leash, long
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms.

a long leash

If someone is given a long leash, they are allowed a lot of freedom to do what they want. Note: A `leash' is a long thin piece of leather or chain, which you attach to a dog's collar so that you can keep the dog under control. He thinks it best to let people have a long leash. `If some want to make fools of themselves, I let them do that, too.' Inga knew that she had to give Judd a long leash or he would have left her. Note: You can say that someone is given a longer leash if they are given more freedom. At the beginning of the campaign, the Republican candidate was given a longer leash than ever before.
See also: leash, long
Collins COBUILD Idioms Dictionary, 3rd ed.
See also:
  • a long leash
  • short leash
  • long time, no hear
  • on a short leash
  • great minds
  • great minds think alike
  • beck and call
  • lex dubia non obligat
  • a penny for them
References in periodicals archive
My parents gave me quite a long leash (freedom), which I consider a great gift from them; letting me do whatever I want to do beyond reason.
Detained Senator Leila De Lima used this popular Filipino maxim (You aren't truly free, you're just on a long leash) to describe the Philippines' situation amid what she said are 'threats' to the country's freedom, such as the influx of illegal Chinese workers and rampant killings.
I knew I didn't have a long leash, so I just wanted to be as efficient as possible and go as deep as I could."
One picture featured Aniston clutching a long leash as she posed with a massive Doberman dog on the balcony overlooking the Pacific Ocean.
Titan actually had a long leash on before, but when he was spotted he had a short leash, so it possibly may have got cut.
Butt Sahab, let MNJ on a long leash. It says a lot about his management and decision-making style and his perception, that early on he recognised and allowed two of the most brilliant and ideal minds and masters of their craft, Mr Javed Jabbar and Mr Majeed Ahmad, to do their job for him.
Use a long leash if you want to give him more freedom.
Each time, the freezing dog was hauled back on a long leash, in what appeared to be an extreme training exercise.
The next step will be to have him stand with the leash laid out in front of him, unsnap the long leash and drop it, go back to about the length of the leash and tell him to come while completely off leash but still inside the yard.
But he doesn't fear a repeat of the 5-1 thrashing the national side took from the USA in Jacksonville four years ago when Craig Levein left the squad on a long leash at the end of an even longer season.
I'm not sure why you've given him such a long leash - ie, allowing him to chat to other women after a day at work.
He let the flying boy have a long leash, while quietly he reflected on the serious and heavy matters that gave him ample gravitas.
PICTURE EXCLUSIVE LONG LEASH: Hoare and lover Karen walking one of their dogs near the Northumberland house
With the ever increasing opaque complexity of Dodd-Frank and the long leash it gives securities law firms, both FINRA and securities attorneys can now generate substantial fines in both good and bad times, which is leaving broker-dealer owners fearful for the future.
"I know by now that if I don't kick well, you don't have a very long leash,'' he went on to say.