tense
1stretched tight, as a cord, fiber, etc.; drawn taut; rigid.
in a state of mental or nervous strain; high-strung; taut: a tense person.
characterized by a strain upon the nerves or feelings: a tense moment.
Phonetics. pronounced with relatively tense tongue muscles; narrow. : Compare lax1 (def. 7).
to make or become tense.
Origin of tense
1Other words from tense
- tensely, adverb
- tenseness, noun
- un·tens·ing, adjective
Other definitions for tense (2 of 2)
a category of verbal inflection that serves chiefly to specify the time of the action or state expressed by the verb.
a set of such categories or constructions in a particular language.
the time, as past, present, or future, expressed by such a category.
such categories or constructions, or their meanings collectively.
Origin of tense
2Other words from tense
- tenseless, adjective
- tense·less·ly, adverb
- tense·less·ness, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use tense in a sentence
The Sabres created some tense moments in the third period, twice cutting the margin to one goal.
New Capitals season, old names in the goal column as Caps beat Sabres in opener | Samantha Pell | January 15, 2021 | Washington PostIgor Bobic, a politics reporter at Huffington Post, captured the tense moment in a video he posted on Twitter.
While most advertisers have returned to those channels, there’s a sense that “the next couple of weeks will be tense,” noted one agency executive, adding that agencies “have to be ready to move at any moment” should there be more unrest.
Marketing Briefing: The next weeks ‘will be tense’: Marketers brace for more social unrest | Kristina Monllos | January 12, 2021 | DigidayIt’s usually billed as a horror comedy or a comedy thriller, but those labels undersell how tense and dark the film gets.
One Good Thing: Housebound is the perfect horror comedy for the perpetually quarantined | Aja Romano | December 31, 2020 | VoxExtreme landingsSpeaking of landings, this February a giant A380 aircraft made a tense touchdown in strong crosswinds in London.
These fascinating flying stories soared above a turbulent year | Rob Verger | December 29, 2020 | Popular-Science
They sense you tensing up at peculiar moments, acting skittish, laughing a little too hard, over-feigning outrage or surprise.
She was trying so hard not to smile that her face kept tensing up.
A Picture Says It All Or Does It? Judging an Author by Their Photo | Jennifer Miller | December 10, 2013 | THE DAILY BEASTAll the while, I was tensing up, knowing that this unexpected time would (and did) make me late for a crucial work appointment.
Barring a little stiffness, which he removed by flexing and tensing his muscles, he felt very strong and capable.
The Hosts of the Air | Joseph A. AltshelerI felt that familiar tightening behind my eyes, that familiar tensing and hunching of my shoulders.
Cue for Quiet | Thomas L. SherredI was esping the muscles in his stomach, under his loose clothing, for that first tensing sign of anger, but nothing showed.
Highways in Hiding | George Oliver SmithHe rode for a quarter 192 of a mile in silence, his muscles slowly tensing as he watched.
The Range Boss | Charles Alden SeltzerShe grew rigid under the shock of dire realization, tensing her muscles, without volition, as if to repel attack.
Heart of the Blue Ridge | Waldron Baily
British Dictionary definitions for tense (1 of 2)
/ (tɛns) /
stretched or stressed tightly; taut or rigid
under mental or emotional strain
producing mental or emotional strain: a tense day
(of a speech sound) pronounced with considerable muscular effort and having relatively precise accuracy of articulation and considerable duration: in English the vowel ( iː ) in ``beam'' is tense Compare lax (def. 4)
(often foll by up) to make or become tense
Origin of tense
1Derived forms of tense
- tensely, adverb
- tenseness, noun
British Dictionary definitions for tense (2 of 2)
/ (tɛns) /
grammar a category of the verb or verbal inflections, such as present, past, and future, that expresses the temporal relations between what is reported in a sentence and the time of its utterance
Origin of tense
2Derived forms of tense
- tenseless, adjective
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
Cultural definitions for tense
An inflectional (see inflection) form of verbs; it expresses the time at which the action described by the verb takes place. The major tenses are past, present, and future. The verb in “I sing” is in the present tense; in “I sang,” past tense; in “I will sing,” future tense. Other tenses are the present perfect (“I have sung”), the past perfect (“I had sung”), and the future perfect (“I will have sung”).
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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