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Webster 1913 Edition


Tighten

Tight′en

,
Verb.
T.
[
imp. & p. p.
Tightened
;
p. pr. & vb. n.
Tightening
.]
To draw tighter; to straiten; to make more close in any manner.
Just where I please, with
tightened
rein
I’ll urge thee round the dusty plain.
Fawkes.
Tightening pulley
(Mach.)
,
a pulley which rests, or is forced, against a driving belt to tighten it.

Webster 1828 Edition


Tighten

TIGHTEN

,
Verb.
T.
ti'tn. To draw tighter; to straiten; to make close in any manner.

Definition 2024


tighten

tighten

English

Verb

tighten (third-person singular simple present tightens, present participle tightening, simple past and past participle tightened)

  1. (transitive) To make tighter.
    Please tighten that **** a quarter-turn.
    • Fawkes
      Just where I please, with tightened rein / I'll urge thee round the dusty plain.
  2. (intransitive) To become tighter.
    That joint is tightening as the wood dries.
  3. (economics) To make money harder to borrow or obtain.
    If the government doesn't tighten the money supply, inflation is certain to be harsh.
  4. (economics) To raise short-term interest rates.
    The Fed is expected to tighten by a quarter-point.

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