From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishstring something ↔ out phrasal verbinformalLONG TIME to make something continue longer than it should Rebel leaders attempted to string out negotiations to avoid reaching a settlement. → string→ See Verb table
Examples from the Corpus
string out• There was no point in stringing this out.• Soon, that string will run out and the balloon tug itself free and be lost.• He was playing with her emotions, stringing them out like a taut band that would snap at the slightest pressure.• They strung the wash out on the wire, pressed clothespins at the end of each piece.• He's not the only suspect, Phil has a string of enemies out to get him. 