tense

Meanings

• a grammatical category of verbs used to express distinctions of time
• become stretched or tense or taut
  • "the bodybuilder's neck muscles tensed;"
• increase the tension on
  • "alternately relax and tense your calf muscle"
  • "tense the rope manually before tensing the spring"
• become tense, nervous, or uneasy
  • "He tensed up when he saw his opponent enter the room"
• cause to be tense and uneasy or nervous or anxious
  • "he got a phone call from his lawyer that tensed him up"
• in or of a state of physical or nervous tension
• pronounced with relatively tense tongue muscles (e.g., the vowel sound in `beat')
• taut or rigid; stretched tight
  • "tense piano strings"

Synonyms

strain, tense up