string along

To keep somebody falsely believing that one has certain intentions.

Verb

  1. To keep somebody falsely believing that one has certain intentions.
    • She's been telling me for ages that she wants to meet up, but won't give me a date. I'm convinced she's stringing me along.
    • What irks is the DfT's response of stringing the industry along. Far better would be for the DfT to say: "No, we are not upgrading this or that part of the railway - we must make the best of what we have." - 2021 May 5,...

Forms

strings along stringing along strung along