taut
adjective
tightly drawn; tense; not slack.
tautly
-
a word derived from
taut.
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.
Mr. Kuznetsov is his tautly reserved partner, spending much of the movie listening, observing, posing pointed questions, laconic but alert.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 19, 2026
This spirit of loss prevails throughout each of these tautly rendered final episodes in which Cassian becomes the unsung hub around which the revolution spins.
From Salon ● Apr. 22, 2025
While it doesn’t venture far from its evident stage roots, neither does “What We Do Next,” a sinewy, tautly calibrated morality play, ever stray from the decidedly contemporary issues at its complex core.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 2, 2023
But the lyricism that was tautly, almost unbearably heightened in “Paul’s Case” felt a bit repetitive and listless over the broader canvas that followed.
From New York Times ● Jul. 22, 2022
The sleeves of his striped oxford shirt lay rolled to his elbows so that the hairs on his forearms showed; his back formed a long hard wedge of muscle against which his suspenders rode tautly.
From "Snow Falling on Cedars: A Novel" by David Guterson
