tweak
to pinch and pull with a jerk and twist: She playfully tweaked his ear.I tweaked my bowtie again, but it stayed stubbornly crooked.
to pull or pinch the nose of, especially gently: He leaned over the stroller and tweaked the baby affectionately.
to make a minor adjustment to: Bad hardware can't be fixed by tweaking the software.
to annoy, tease, or make fun of: How much of her “dumb blonde” image was actually a brilliant performer tweaking the stuffed shirts?
Slang.
to use methamphetamine, cocaine, or other stimulant drugs: He'll try to avoid taking a drug test if he's been tweaking and toking.
to engage in wildly excited or agitated behavior under the influence of such drugs (usually followed by out): If I'd seen someone else acting this way I would have thought they were tweaking on meth.
an act or instance of tweaking; a sharp, twisting pull or jerk: "Thought it was you," she said, greeting him with a tweak on the nose.
a minor adjustment: Here are 12 simple tweaks to speed up your computer.
tweak out,
to extract by pinching and pulling with a jerk, as with tweezers: In a twinkling she had tweaked out a dozen hairs and put them in an evidence bag.
to remove (defects or unwanted features) by means of a minor adjustment: You have a couple of bugs to tweak out from your website, but you’re on the right track.
to effect (an improvement) by means of minor adjustments: They were able to tweak out some pretty hefty performance improvements to the sound system.
to optimize in this way: My operating system isn’t tweaked out the way I like, but it's running, stable enough, and ready for use.
Slang. to engage in wildly excited or agitated behavior under the influence of methamphetamine, cocaine, or other stimulant drugs: She grabbed a knife and waved it around while tweaking out on crystal meth.He showed up shirtless and barefoot, tweaked out on cocaine.
Slang. to make or become wildly excited or agitated; freak (someone) out: I decided not to tell my kids what I’d done so they wouldn't tweak out about it.
Origin of tweak
1Other words from tweak
- tweak·er, noun
Words Nearby tweak
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use tweak in a sentence
Fortunately, scientists are already making those tweaks, by developing finer-grained computer models that do a better job capturing how the atmosphere churns in real life.
Improved three-week weather forecasts could save lives from disaster | Alexandra Witze | August 27, 2020 | Science NewsIf not, you’ll have to play around with the above tweaks to get things close enough.
How to fix that annoying audio delay on your soundbar | Whitson Gordon | August 25, 2020 | Popular-ScienceThat genetic tweak merely supplied a marker that would identify irradiated insects but didn’t change any fertility genes.
Genetically modified mosquitoes have been OK’d for a first U.S. test flight | Susan Milius | August 22, 2020 | Science NewsThey’re also working on tweaks to the manufacturing process to boost speeds and bring down costs.
From lighting tricks to background arrangements to your intonation, we cover all the small tweaks you can make to have a big impact in our new virtual meeting rooms.
Paul has advised that America should resist those who want to “tweak Russia all the time.”
But they do need to tweak the formula so that it stays relevant.
Burger King’s New French Fries Took Ten Years to Develop | Daniel Gross | September 24, 2013 | THE DAILY BEASTJuicy J claims the label wanted them to tweak their sound, transitioning from their crunk roots to more pop-oriented material.
Juicy J, Oscar-Winning Former Three 6 Mafia Rapper, on His Triumphant Return | Marlow Stern | May 22, 2013 | THE DAILY BEASTWhich is to say, it would probably be easy for companies to slightly tweak what they are doing and go on paying very little tax.
He was ready to tweak the cost-of-living formula for Social Security.
Lessons From the Fiscal Cliff: the Political Fallout | Robert Shrum | January 4, 2013 | THE DAILY BEASTShe had traveled the world; she had danced with kings, and had made two popes laugh and tweak her pointed chin.
The Cup of Fury | Rupert HughesHe tweaked the string and his tweak was met with uncompromising resistance.
The Incredible Honeymoon | E. NesbitBrown had never disclosed the brutal delinquency of Long Bill tweak.
Every Man for Himself | Norman Duncan"I guess they were, old man," returned Roger, leaning forward to tweak his ear affectionately.
Ethel Morton at Chautauqua | Mabell S. C. SmithNo, by heavens, I would tweak the nose of a small sprig of royalty itself.
The Cavaliers of Virginia, vol. 1 of 2 | William A. Caruthers
British Dictionary definitions for tweak
/ (twiːk) /
to twist, jerk, or pinch with a sharp or sudden movement: to tweak someone's nose
motor racing slang to tune (a car or engine) for peak performance
informal to make a minor alteration
an instance of tweaking
informal a minor alteration
Origin of tweak
1Derived forms of tweak
- tweaky, 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
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