Idioms

by one's bootstraps

by (one's) (own) bootstraps

By one's own efforts to improve one's life or circumstances, rather than relying on others. After I declared bankruptcy, I had to haul myself up by my bootstraps and rebuild my financial standing. Poor people just need to drag themselves up by their own bootstraps, huh? Well, that lacks quite a lot of nuance, don't you think? I know you're heartbroken by this breakup, but you just have to pull yourself up by the bootstraps and get back out there into the dating scene.
See also: bootstrap, by
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms. © 2024 Farlex, Inc, all rights reserved.

by one's bootstraps

see under pull oneself up.
See also: bootstrap, by
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer. Copyright © 2003, 1997 by The Christine Ammer 1992 Trust. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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References in periodicals archive
Though Hughes' father taught him that realizing the "American dream" is a matter of pulling oneself up by one's bootstraps, Hughes eventually reached the opposite conclusion.
The ethics of reducing inequality -- striking a balance
Though Hughes's father taught him that realizing the "American dream" is a matter of pulling oneself up by one's bootstraps, Hughes eventually reached the opposite conclusion.
The ethics of reducing inequality
Republicans' greater satisfaction, relative to Democrats', with the possibility of pulling oneself up by one's bootstraps aligns with their more conservative political credo.
Majority in U.S. Dissatisfied With Next Generation's Prospects; About half are satisfied with Americans' willingness to work hard to get ahead
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