tweaking

American  

[twee-king] / ˈtwi kɪŋ /

noun

1. the act of pinching and pulling something with a jerk and twist.

   A slight tweaking of his lips and a furrowing of his brow expressed his disapproval.

2. the act of making minor adjustments to something.

   A mere tweaking of some bit of technology is not going to fix this massive problem.

3. the act of annoying, teasing, or making fun of someone.

   The movie seems like it might be an affectionate tweaking of the nerd generation.

4. Slang. the act of using methamphetamine, cocaine, or other stimulant drugs, or of behaving wildly or erratically under their influence (usually followed byout ).

   Why do people take stuff they’re "not sure of" and then complain about tweaking out—or worse, ending up in the hospital?

5. Slang. the act of behaving or causing someone to behave in a wildly excited or agitated manner (usually followed byout ); freaking out.

   What with his tweaking out over every little mistake, the boss hasn’t been anyone's hero of late.

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adjective

1. making minor adjustments to something.

   I’m so happy with the sound—a huge antidote for me coming from the ever tweaking, never satisfied audiophile world.

2. Slang. behaving in a wildly excited or agitated manner, especially as an effect of using methamphetamine, cocaine, or other stimulant drugs.

   He was pacing around and bursting in and out of emotional fits like a tweaking junkie.

3. Slang. (used as an intensifier).

   What kind of a tweaking idiot would do that?

adverb

1. Slang. (used as an intensifier).

   These fudge brownies are tweaking amazing.

Etymology

Origin of tweaking

First recorded in 1610–20; tweak + -ing ¹ for the noun senses; tweak + -ing ² for the adjective and adverb senses

Example Sentences

However the 28-year-old has missed only three minutes of the Prem so far this season and was again instrumental, pulling strings, tweaking noses and finding holes.

From BBC

The organisers have attempted to balance the duel, which will be played best of three sets, by tweaking some rules.

From Barron's

Philip Springer, a legendary composer who co-wrote the holiday hit “Santa Baby,” told MarketWatch he wasn’t keen on how Bublé wanted to approach the song, tweaking it so that “Santa baby” becomes “Santa buddy.”

From MarketWatch

His strategy called for collaborating with other relevant brands, communities and artists; developing new products that would appeal to younger shoppers; while also tweaking and styling its icons to suit different generations.

From The Wall Street Journal

The vast majority of architects Smith spoke to were used to framing with wood, so introducing alternative materials meant spending valuable weeks tweaking plans and tinkering with the budget.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• tease
• twist