Apron string \A"pron string`\ The string of an apron. {To be tied to a} {wife's or mother's} {apron strings}, to be unduly controlled by a wife or mother. He was so made that he could not submit to be tied to the apron strings even of the best of wives. --Macaulay.
apron string n : cord used to tie an apron at the waist [syn: {apron strings}]