straight-arm

American  

[streyt-ahrm] / ˈstreɪtˌɑrm /

verb (used with object)

1. Football. to push (a potential tackler) away by holding the arm out straight; stiff-arm.

2. to force, push, or fend off by or as if by holding out a stiff arm against obstacles.

   He straight-armed his way into the middle of the crowded room.

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noun

1. Football. an act or instance of straight-arming.

straight-arm British  

adjective

1. rugby (of a tackle) performed with the arm fully extended

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verb

1. (tr) to ward off (an opponent) with the arm outstretched

Etymology

Origin of straight-arm

First recorded in 1900–05

Example Sentences

"I’m a member of the straight-arm club. … I just pretend that you have a cold and I have a cold. Join the straight-arm club with me."

From Fox News • Apr. 2, 2019

"I'm a member of the straight-arm club," she said, extending a stiff arm out to demonstrate.

From Salon • Apr. 2, 2019

“He is someone who gives hope that things can change,” said Levi Sanders, who has his father’s bounding walk and straight-arm lean into the lectern, before introducing the candidate in Wolfeboro, N.H., in January.

From New York Times • Feb. 28, 2016

He offered a distinctly secular straight-arm gesture to those he feels have been less than sympathetic during a trying period of form.

From The Guardian • Sep. 27, 2010

For the moment, at least, Clare Kendall was an absorbing study, as she greeted us with a frank, jerky straight-arm handshake.

From The Ear in the Wall by Reeve, Arthur B. (Arthur Benjamin)