tense

1
[ tens ]
/ tɛns /
SEE SYNONYMS FOR tense ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective, tens·er, tens·est.

stretched tight, as a cord, fiber, etc.; drawn taut; rigid.
in a state of mental or nervous strain; high-strung; taut: a tense person.
characterized by a strain upon the nerves or feelings: a tense moment.
Phonetics. pronounced with relatively tense tongue muscles; narrow. Compare lax(def 7).

verb (used with or without object), tensed, tens·ing.

to make or become tense.

Origin of tense

1
1660–70; < Latin tēnsus past participle of tendere to stretch; see tend1

OTHER WORDS FROM tense

tense·ly, adverb tense·ness, noun un·tens·ing, adjective

Words nearby tense

tenpins, tenpounder, tenrec, tens, tensas, tense, tense logic, tensegrity, tensible, tensile, tensile strength

Words related to tenseness

vigor, emotion, strength, severity, power, tension, fury, energy, excitement, earnestness, depth, magnitude, fervor, anxiety, concentration, ferocity, nervousness, hardship, crunch, agony

Example sentences from the Web for tenseness

British Dictionary definitions for tenseness (1 of 2)

tense 1
/ (tɛns) /

adjective

stretched or stressed tightly; taut or rigid
under mental or emotional strain
producing mental or emotional strain a tense day
(of a speech sound) pronounced with considerable muscular effort and having relatively precise accuracy of articulation and considerable duration in English the vowel ( iː ) in ``beam'' is tense Compare lax (def. 4)

verb

(often foll by up) to make or become tense

Derived forms of tense

tensely, adverb tenseness, noun

Word Origin for tense

C17: from Latin tensus taut, from tendere to stretch

British Dictionary definitions for tenseness (2 of 2)

tense 2
/ (tɛns) /

noun

grammar a category of the verb or verbal inflections, such as present, past, and future, that expresses the temporal relations between what is reported in a sentence and the time of its utterance

Derived forms of tense

tenseless, adjective

Word Origin for tense

C14: from Old French tens time, from Latin tempus

Cultural definitions for tenseness

tense

An inflectional (see inflection) form of verbs; it expresses the time at which the action described by the verb takes place. The major tenses are past, present, and future. The verb in “I sing” is in the present tense; in “I sang,” past tense; in “I will sing,” future tense. Other tenses are the present perfect (“I have sung”), the past perfect (“I had sung”), and the future perfect (“I will have sung”).