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View synonyms for straighten

straighten

[streyt-n]

verb (used with or without object)

  1. to make or become straight in direction, form, position, character, conduct, condition, etc. (often followed by up orout ).



straighten

/ ˈstreɪtən /

verb

  1. to make or become straight

  2. (tr) to make neat or tidy

    straighten your desk

“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
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Other Word Forms

  • straightener noun
  • overstraighten verb
  • prestraighten verb (used with object)
  • restraighten verb
  • unstraightened adjective
  • well-straightened adjective
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Word History and Origins

Origin of straighten1

First recorded in 1535–45; straight + -en 1
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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.

He has said that cities with Democratic political leadership such as San Francisco, Chicago and Los Angeles “are very unsafe places and we are going to straighten them out.”

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Or could the head of the country's supreme audit institution, another Socialist named Pierre Moscovici, help straighten the country's finances?

Read more on Barron's

Now, it is helping the company straighten up its balance sheet—and getting its hands on a major business in return.

When his Part D drug plan declined to cover one of his medications, the office staff called the insurance company and got it straightened out, saving him time and frustration.

Read more on Barron's

Her forfeit was to straighten her mop of curly hair for the team's evening meal.

Read more on BBC

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straight-edgestraighten out