To be At A Loose End describes a time when you are sitting around with nothing to do. This phrase has its roots in the days of the tall sailing ships. Sailing ships would have thousands of ropes making up the rigging. Each length of rope would need to be bound tight at both ends to stop them from unravelling – something that would be disastrous in a storm. If the captain found seamen sitting around with nothing to do, he would often assign them a mundane task such as checking the rigging for loose ends and retying them. This meant that idle men would literally find themselves “at a loose end”.