loosely

Concise Oxford English Dictionary © 2008 Oxford University Press:
loose /luːs/

▶adjective

• 1 not firmly or tightly fixed in place.

  ■ not held, tied, or packaged together.

  ■ not bound or tethered.

  ■ (of the ball in a game) in play but not in any player's possession.

• 2 not fitting tightly or closely.

• 3 not dense or compact.

  ■ (of play, especially in rugby) with the players far apart.

• 4 relaxed; physically slack.

  ■ not strict or exact.

  ■ careless and indiscreet: loose talk.

• 5 dated promiscuous: a loose woman.

▶noun (the loose) Rugby loose play. ▶verb

• 1 set free.

  ■ untie; unfasten.

  ■ relax (one's grip).

• 2 (usu. loose something off) discharge; fire.

– phrases
hang loose informal, chiefly N. Amer. remain calm and untroubled.
on the loose having escaped from confinement.

– derivatives
loosely adverb,
looseness noun.

– origin ME loos ‘free from bonds’, from ON lauss, of Gmc origin.

usage: The words loose and lose should not be confused: see usage at lose.