tenterhook
[ ten-ter-hoo k ]
/ ˈtɛn tərˌhʊk /
noun
Idioms for tenterhook
on tenterhooks,
in a state of uneasy suspense or painful anxiety: The movie keeps one on tenterhooks until the very last moment.
Words nearby tenterhook
tentage,
tentation,
tentative,
tented,
tenter,
tenterhook,
tenterhooks,
tenth,
tenth amendment,
tenth commandment,
tenth cranial nerve
British Dictionary definitions for on tenterhooks
tenterhook
/ (ˈtɛntəˌhʊk) /
noun
one of a series of hooks or bent nails used to hold cloth stretched on a tenter
on tenterhooks
in a state of tension or suspense
Cultural definitions for on tenterhooks
on tenterhooks
To be kept on tenterhooks is to be held in a state of nervous apprehension: “We've been on tenterhooks since the election results started coming in.”
notes for on tenterhooks
A tenterhook was a hooked device used in the 1700s to secure newly woven cloth onto a frame.
Idioms and Phrases with on tenterhooks
on tenterhooks
In a state of painful suspense, as in We were on tenterhooks all through the game, hoping against hope that our team would win. This expression alludes to hooks that formerly were used to hold newly woven cloth that was being stretched on a frame. Their name has long survived this method of manufacture. [Mid-1700s]