tighten
verbattested in dialogue
- //ˈtaɪ.tən//
- /[ˈtʰaɪ̯tn̩]/
- /[ˈtʰaɪ̯ʔn̩]/
To make tighter.
verb
- 1
To make tighter.
Please tighten that screw a quarter-turn.
Just where I please, with tighten;d rein / I'll urge thee round the dusty plain.
- 2
To become tighter.
That joint is tightening as the wood dries.
- 3
To make money harder to borrow or obtain.
If the government doesn't tighten the money supply, inflation is certain to be harsh.
- 4
To raise short-term interest rates.
The Fed is expected to tighten by a quarter-point.
Etymology
Synchronically equivalent to tight + -en, but actually derived from Middle English tighten, from Old English tyhtan, thus originally unrelated to tight (Old English *þiht).
Forms
- past tense
- tightened
- past participle
- tightened
- present participle
- tightening
- third person singular
- tightens