airtight

[air-tahyt]

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adjective

preventing the entrance or escape of air or gas.

having no weak points or openings of which an opponent may take advantage: an airtight contract.

Origin of airtight

First recorded in 1750–60; air¹ + tight

Related formsair·tight·ly, adverbair·tight·ness, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for airtight

Contemporary Examples of airtight

But good luck convincing other countries that the case against North Korea is airtight.
Cyberwar on North Korea Could Be Illegal
Shane Harris
December 23, 2014
But the mystery unfolds over an airtight 22 minutes, not a laborious 8.5 hours.
Why ‘Arrested Development’s’ Fourth Season Is a Bust: Contracts and More
Marlow Stern
May 28, 2013
As a reporter for nearly 40 years, I know an airtight story when I see one.
Philly Sportswriter Bill Conlin's Shame: Accused of Child Molestation
Buzz Bissinger
December 22, 2011
Refrigerate in an airtight container; will keep for up to one month.
Lights, Camera, Cocktails
Brody Brown
August 5, 2011
Place all ingredients in an airtight container and allow 12 to 24 hours for the infusion process.
Film-Inspired Cocktails: Sucker Punch
Brody Brown
March 26, 2011

Historical Examples of airtight

I give you my word I could feel myself heatin' up like an airtight stove.
Mary-'Gusta
Joseph C. Lincoln
The mild aroma of Heerenbaai-Tabak filled the airtight groundcar.
Wind
Charles Louis Fontenay
It was not airtight, but there would probably be no further investigation.
The Perfectionists
Arnold Castle
The bodies had been walled in well enough, but those walls were not airtight.
The Iron Ration
George Abel Schreiner
It was airtight above or below that one spot on the throttle.
Test Pilot
David Goodger (goodger@python.org)

British Dictionary definitions for airtight

airtight

adjective

not permitting the passage of air either in or out

having no weak points; rigid or unassailablethis categorization is hardly airtight

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for airtight

adj.

also air-tight, "impervious to air," 1760, from air (n.1) + tight. Figurative sense of "incontrovertible" (of arguments, alabis, etc.) is from 1929.