tighten
/ˈtaɪ.tən/ verb B1- To make tighter. · Please tighten that screw a quarter-turn.
- To become tighter. · That joint is tightening as the wood dries.
- To make money harder to borrow or obtain. · If the government doesn't tighten the money supply, inflation is certain to be harsh.
- To raise short-term interest rates. · The Fed is expected to tighten by a quarter-point.
He/she/it tightens · Past tightened · Past participle tightened · -ing form tightening
Verb forms
- Base form
- tighten
- He/she/it
- tightens
- Past
- tightened
- Past participle
- tightened
- -ing form
- tightening
Phrasal verbs and expressions
From the library
On these his eager, questioning eyes were fixed, and I saw on his keen, alert face that tightening of the lips, that quiver of the nostrils, and concentration of the heavy, tufted brows which I knew so well.
Then his finger tightened on the trigger.
Other matches
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