taut
[tawt]
adjective, taut·er, taut·est.
tightly drawn; tense; not slack.
emotionally or mentally strained or tense: taut nerves.
in good order or condition; tidy; neat.
Origin of taut
Synonyms for taut
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
Related Words for tautness
tension, stress, anxiety, bruise, pressure, burden, ache, injury, sprain, nervousness, hardship, crunch, agony, intensity, strain, heat, trauma, hassle, fear, worryExamples from the Web for tautness
Historical Examples of tautness
His sudden face went from the tautness of his last speech to fear.
Captives of the FlameSamuel R. Delany
Parish Thornton was breathing his words through lips that scarcely moved as he bent forward with the tautness of a coiled spring.
The Roof TreeCharles Neville Buck
She felt again the muscles of his forearms snap into tautness as he stood silent under her father's insults.
The Tyranny of WeaknessCharles Neville Buck
Conscious of the tautness of his own nerves, strung like quivering violin strings.
To me, strung up to a tautness of sensation that almost frightens me, this silence of the Mate is horrible.
An Ocean TrampWilliam McFee
taut
adjective
Word Origin for taut
C14 tought; probably related to Old English togian to tow 1
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
taut
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper