tense
1 Americanadjective
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tenser,
comparative
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tensest
superlative
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stretched tight, as a cord, fiber, etc.; drawn taut; rigid.
-
in a state of mental or nervous strain; high-strung; taut.
a tense person.
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characterized by a strain upon the nerves or feelings.
a tense moment.
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Phonetics. pronounced with relatively tense tongue muscles; narrow.
verb (used with or without object)
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tenses,
present (3rd person singular)
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tensed,
past participle, past
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tensing
present participle
noun
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tenses
plural
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a category of verbal inflection that serves chiefly to specify the time of the action or state expressed by the verb.
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a set of such categories or constructions in a particular language.
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the time, as past, present, or future, expressed by such a category.
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such categories or constructions, or their meanings collectively.
adjective
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stretched or stressed tightly; taut or rigid
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under mental or emotional strain
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producing mental or emotional strain
a tense day
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(of a speech sound) pronounced with considerable muscular effort and having relatively precise accuracy of articulation and considerable duration Compare lax
in English the vowel (iː) in ``beam'' is tense
verb
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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tenselessnessnoun
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tensenessnoun
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tenselessadjective
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untensingadjective
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tenselesslyadverb
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tenselyadverb
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Adjectives
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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tensesimple
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tensessimple
-
have tensedperfect
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has tensedperfect
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am tensingprogressive
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are tensingprogressive
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is tensingprogressive
-
have been tensingperfect progressive
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has been tensingperfect progressive
Past
-
tensedsimple
-
had tensedperfect
-
was tensingprogressive
-
were tensingprogressive
-
had been tensingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of tense1
First recorded in 1660–70; from Latin tēnsus, past participle of tendere “to stretch”; see tend 1
Origin of tense2
First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English tens, from Middle French, from Latin tempus “time”
Explanation
When something's stretched tight, it's tense. A rope can be tense. So can a muscle. When a person's tense, they're anxious. When a situation is tense, you might say you could "cut the tension with a knife." When a muscle tenses up, it contracts suddenly–-a person can be said to tense up also. The opposite of tense is "relaxed." If you tense up during exams, it's probably best to learn some relaxation techniques. The brain works best when it's relaxed.
Vocabulary lists containing tense
A Long Walk to Water
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TEKS ELAR Academic Vocabulary List (5th-7th grades)
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Language and Grammar - Introductory
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
But when it withheld similar information in 2017, amid a tense military stand-off with India, Beijing blamed technical problems at its hydrological monitoring stations in Tibet, Singh said.
From BBC ● Oct. 14, 2026
At a tense board meeting, Mashburn chastised California Forever for the rush but voted to endorse a compromise bill.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 10, 2026
It’s the reason so many of us walk to our cars with our keys poking through our fingers, why we tense up when someone walks too closely behind us on a dark street.
From Slate ● Oct. 9, 2026
But people are growing "tense," feeling that "this wasn't what I expected."
From Barron's ● Oct. 9, 2026
He flashed a tense smile, then took a plain blue mug and gave it to his father.
From "Bye Forever, I Guess" by Jodi Meadows
“But when you speak in your mother tongue, your body tenses up a bit because you think, ‘I understand the full emotional spectrum of what I’m talking about.’
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 31, 2026
“When I’m frustrated and my eyes roll and my voice tenses, they feel that,” he said.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 23, 2026
Mr. Drout analyzes with clarity and humor Tolkien’s fascination with Finnish grammar, the distinctive ways he uses pronouns and the particular verb tenses he favors.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 12, 2025
Simon Cheng still visibly tenses when he describes his detention in China.
From New York Times ● May 27, 2024
Grandma tenses her jaw, and her body stiffens.
From "Split the Sky" by Marie Arnold
“As the night progressed, it got tenser and tenser. There were just more cops on all sides. It felt like we were being slowly pushed in and crushed,” said Ocean Muir, a sophomore.
From Seattle Times ● Apr. 25, 2024
And this reaction evokes the challenge CNN faces as its news team barrels into a national election cycle that's already looking tenser and more fraught than 2020's or 2022's nailbiters.
From Salon ● Aug. 17, 2023
Things got tenser when Hyundai and LG Energy Solution announced a $4.3 billion electric battery plant in May at Hyundai’s new complex.
From Washington Times ● Jun. 27, 2023
As it grows, things become tenser — and weirder.
From New York Times ● Jun. 6, 2022
“Four, three, two . “Oppenheimer, on whom had rested a very heavy burden, grew tenser as the last seconds ticked off,” remembered Farrell.
From "Bomb" by Steve Sheinkin
Although in the film, some of the tensest scenes are focused on the act of voting, in reality, much of the drama may come in meetings in the days before conclave officially begins.
From BBC ● May 1, 2025
The tensest moment of the debate was when Bolsonaro called da Silva to stand next to him as he answered a question.
From Washington Times ● Oct. 29, 2022
Amid its tensest standoff with the West since the Cold War, Russia plans to give its nuclear weapons apparatus a practice run this weekend.
From Seattle Times ● Feb. 18, 2022
The comments were among the most conciliatory that Moscow has made on the Ukraine crisis, which has escalated into one of the tensest East-West standoffs since the Cold War ended three decades ago.
From Reuters ● Jan. 28, 2022
The next forty-eight hours, Hitler later confessed, were the tensest of his life.
From "The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics" by Daniel James Brown
When her sister, Rowe, walked in that morning, she found Waldorf with her eyes wide and glazed over, her jaw tensed.
From Salon ● May 27, 2026
Giving evidence at Liverpool Crown Court, Amaaz said he tensed up as he was grabbed by the arm and recognised it was a police officer when he turned round.
From BBC ● Apr. 28, 2026
Imagine how the majority of spectators would have tensed up when manager Dave Roberts trudged to the mound to remove Alex Vesia if the game was actually close.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 1, 2025
It was too expensive to keep the fibers tensed all the time, plus it interfered with the electricity—but for earthquake-length bursts of time, the building and its occupants would be safe.
From Slate ● Jan. 27, 2024
Since her encounter with Khione, Piper seemed more wired, tensed up inside like a primed catapult, as if she were determined never to be caught off guard again.
From "The House of Hades" by Rick Riordan
After a difficult doctor’s appointment with her mother recently, Thompson says she felt her whole body tensing up.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 29, 2025
Though my back initially kept tensing at the sharper touch, it soon relaxed into the sensation, as if my body were recalling those childhood back scratches.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 8, 2025
"Sometimes, I catch myself tensing up," Justin said.
From Salon ● Oct. 1, 2023
“I’m tensing up. There’s a lot of stuff I can do to protect myself.”
From Seattle Times ● Mar. 8, 2023
Farid felt Silvertongue tensing every muscle—as if he wanted to run to his daughter, who looked almost as pale as her dress.
From "Inkheart" by Cornelia Funke
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
