stiffen
verb (used with object)
to make stiff.
were stiffening
-
past progressiveof stiffen.past progressive
Used to describe an ongoing action or continuous state that was happening at a specific time in the past.
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.
And last week upper lips were stiffening again.
From Time Magazine Archive
The flexible stems and shoots thrust aside by Sticky’s fall were stiffening and spreading back into place.
From "The Mysterious Benedict Society" by Trenton Lee Stewart
Hundreds of thousands of Czecho-Slovaks and Jugo-Slavs had joined the enemy, and some were stiffening the Piave front.
From A Short History of the Great War by A. F. (Albert Frederick) Pollard
My joints were stiffening, my fingers becoming numb with the pressure.
From Seven Frozen Sailors by George Manville Fenn
The muscles of his face were stiffening, and his inclination to laugh cost him a twinge.
From Despair's Last Journey by David Christie Murray
