stiff
[ stif ]
/ stɪf /
adjective, stiff·er, stiff·est.
rigid or firm; difficult or impossible to bend or flex: a stiff collar.
not moving or working easily: The motor was a little stiff from the cold weather.
(of a person or animal) not supple; moving with difficulty, as from cold, age, exhaustion, or injury.
strong; forceful; powerful: stiff winds; The fighter threw a stiff right to his opponent's jaw.
strong or potent to the taste or system, as a beverage or medicine: He was cold and wanted a good stiff drink.
resolute; firm in purpose; unyielding; stubborn.
stubbornly continued: a stiff battle.
firm against any tendency to decrease, as stock-market prices.
rigidly formal; cold and unfriendly, as people, manners, or proceedings.
lacking ease and grace; awkward: a stiff style of writing.
excessively regular or formal, as a design; not graceful in form or arrangement.
laborious or difficult, as a task.
severe or harsh, as a penalty or demand.
excessive; unusually high or great: $50 is pretty stiff to pay for that.
firm from tension; taut: to keep a stiff rein.
relatively firm in consistency, as semisolid matter; thick: a stiff jelly; a stiff batter.
dense or compact; not friable: stiff soil.
Nautical.
(of a vessel) having a high resistance to rolling; stable (opposed to crank2).
Scot. and North England.
sturdy, stout, or strongly built.
Australian Slang.
out of luck; unfortunate.
noun
Slang.
- a dead body; corpse.
- a formal or priggish person.
- a poor tipper; tightwad.
- a drunk.
Slang.
- a fellow: lucky stiff; poor stiff.
- a tramp; hobo.
- a laborer.
Slang.
- a forged check.
- a promissory note or bill of exchange.
- a letter or note, especially if secret or smuggled.
Slang.
a contestant, especially a racehorse, sure to lose.
adverb
in or to a firm or rigid state: The wet shirt was frozen stiff.
completely, intensely, or extremely: I'm bored stiff by these lectures. We're scared stiff.
verb (used with object)
Slang.
to fail or refuse to tip (a waiter, porter, etc.).
Slang.
to cheat; gyp; do out of: The company stiffed me out of a week's pay.
Origin of stiff
SYNONYMS FOR stiff
6 unrelenting, resolved, obstinate, pertinacious.
9 reserved, constrained, starched, prim.
10 graceless, inelegant.
OTHER WORDS FROM stiff
stiff·ish, adjective
stiff·ly, adverb
stiff·ness, noun
o·ver·stiff, adjective
o·ver·stiff·ly, adverb
o·ver·stiff·ness, noun
sem·i·stiff, adjective
sem·i·stiff·ly, adverb
sem·i·stiff·ness, noun
un·stiff, adjective
un·stiff·ly, adverb
un·stiff·ness, noun
Words nearby stiff
Example sentences from the Web for stiffness
Early signs are often movement-related, including tremors, stiffness, and problems with walking.
The Burden Robin Williams Carried: Diagnosed With Parkinson’s and Depression |Dr. Anand Veeravagu, MD, Tej Azad |August 15, 2014 |DAILY BEASTSome senior Whitehall sources believed that there was an early “stiffness” between the Queen and Mrs. Thatcher.
Margaret Thatcher and Queen Elizabeth’s Complicated Relationship |Andrew Marr |April 8, 2013 |DAILY BEASTYour miner friends notice the stiffness of your walk and chaff you about it.
But after a few minutes with him, you notice the stiffness and formality are gone.
"There is no stiffness about the immortals," laughed the Sun-god.
The Enchanted Castle |E. NesbitHe does not ask to have his boots laced up nor complain of their stiffness.
A Poor Man's House |Stephen Sydney ReynoldsMy hand shook so, owing to the stiffness of my night-cap last night before I went to roost.
Tales of the Wonder Club, Volume II |Alexander HuthHungerford rose with the stiffness of the night, and coming to Stover, took him by the shoulders.
Stover at Yale |Owen JohnsonSometimes the bodies of people who are struck are as stiff as iron and retain their stiffness.
Thunder and Lightning |Camille Flammarion
British Dictionary definitions for stiffness
stiff
/ (stɪf) /
adjective
not easily bent; rigid; inflexible
not working or moving easily or smoothly
a stiff handle
difficult to accept in its severity or harshness
a stiff punishment
moving with pain or difficulty; not supple
a stiff neck
difficult; arduous
a stiff climb
unrelaxed or awkward; formal
firmer than liquid in consistency; thick or viscous
powerful; strong
a stiff breeze; a stiff drink
excessively high
a stiff price
nautical
(of a sailing vessel) relatively resistant to heeling or rolling
Compare tender 1 (def. 11)
lacking grace or attractiveness
stubborn or stubbornly maintained
a stiff fight
obsolete
tightly stretched; taut
slang, mainly Australian
unlucky
slang
intoxicated
stiff upper lip See lip (def. 9)
stiff with informal
amply provided with
noun
slang
a corpse
slang
anything thought to be a loser or a failure; flop
adverb
completely or utterly
bored stiff; frozen stiff
verb
(intr) slang
to fail
the film stiffed
(tr) slang, mainly US
to cheat or swindle
(tr) slang
to kill
Derived forms of stiff
stiffish, adjective stiffly, adverb stiffness, nounWord Origin for stiff
Old English
stīf; related to Old Norse
stīfla to dam up, Middle Low German
stīf stiff, Latin
stīpēs wooden post,
stīpāre to press
Idioms and Phrases with stiffness
stiff
In addition to the idioms beginning with stiff
- stiff as a board
- stiff upper lip
also see:
- bore to death (stiff)
- keep a stiff upper lip
- scare out of one's wits (stiff)