stiff´ness

stiff´ness: stiff «stihf», adjective, adverb, noun, verb.

–adj.

1. not easily bent; fixed; rigid: »a stiff brush. He wore a stiff collar.

2. hard to move: »a stiff gear. The old hinges on the barn door are stiff.

3. not able to move easily: »a stiff neck. The old man's joints were stiff and sore.

4. drawn tight; tense; taut: »a stiff cord, to keep a stiff rein.

5. not fluid; firm: »a stiff cake batter. That jelly is stiff enough to stand alone.

6. dense; compact: »stiff soil.

7. Figurative. not easy or natural in manner; formal: »He made a stiff bow to his partner. He writes in a stiff style.
SYNONYM(S): stilted, affected, constrained, ceremonious.

8. lacking grace of line, form, or arrangement: »stiff geometrical designs.

9. Figurative. resolute; steadfast; unyielding: »a stiff resistance. He…was as stiff about urging his point as ever you could be (Charlotte Brontë).

10. strong and steady in motion: »a stiff breeze.

11. harsh or severe: »a stiff penalty.

12. Informal, Figurative. a) a more than seems suitable: »He asks a stiff price for his house.
SYNONYM(S): immoderate, excessive. b) firm, as prices, a commodity, or a market.

13. a) Informal. very strong; potent: »Bobby poured everybody a stiff drink of bourbon (James Dickey).
b) U.S. Slang. drunk: »Both laughed some more, which proves beyond doubt that both…were stiff (Atlantic).

14. Figurative. hard to deal with; hard; laborious: »a stiff fight, stiff opposition. The teacher gave us a stiff test.
SYNONYM(S): rigorous.

15. (of a ship) carrying a press of canvas in the wind without heeling or veering excessively.

16. Scottish. strongly built; stalwart; sturdy.

–adv.

1. in a stiff manner or condition; rigidly: »to be frozen stiff.

2. Informal. very much; extremely; completely: »to be bored stiff. I'm scared stiff of that dog.

3. hard by; close: »He…lays long iron shots stiff to the pin (Tuscaloosa News).

–n. Slang.

1. a dead body; corpse: »They piled the stiffs outside the door (John Hay).

2. Figurative. a stiff, formal, or priggish person: »These old stiffs of teachers just give you a lot of junk about literature and economics (Sinclair Lewis).

3. any worker; fellow; person: »... a directory that appears to contain the name and assignment of every working news stiff in the capital (New York Times).

4. a person who fails to tip for service.

5. a hopeless or incorrigible fellow.

6. U.S. a hobo; tramp: »stiffs riding the rods of Western freight cars (Time).

7. an unskilled dockworker.

8. a drunken person.

–v.t.

Slang. to leave without tipping or paying: »to stiff a waiter or bellhop. He stiffed the landlady for the month's rent he owed her.

╂[Old English stīf]

–stiff´ly, adverb.

–stiff´ness, noun.

Synonym Study adjective. 1 Stiff, rigid mean not easily bent. Stiff implies a hard firmness that resists bending: »a book with a stiff cover.
Rigid often implies so stiff that it will not bend without breaking: »rigid icicles. The gate has a rigid iron frame.

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ness — ness·ber·ry; ness·ler·iza·tion; ness·ler·ize; ness·ler s; new·fan·gled·ness; new·ness; news·i·ness; nice·ness; nig·gard·li·ness; nig·gard·ness; nigh·ness; nip·pi·ness; no·ble·ness; nois·i·ness; non·cha·lant·ness; north·er·li·ness; north·ness;… … English syllables
stiff´ly — stiff «stihf», adjective, adverb, noun, verb. –adj. 1. not easily bent; fixed; rigid: »a stiff brush. He wore a stiff collar. 2. hard to move: »a stiff gear. The old hinges on the barn door are stiff. 3. not able to move easily: »a stiff neck.… … Useful english dictionary
stiff — stiff; stiff·en; stiff·en·er; stiff·ish; stiff·ly; stiff·ness; … English syllables
stiff — stif adj lacking in suppleness <stiff muscles> stiff·ness n … Medical dictionary
stiff — stiff1 [ stıf ] adjective ** ▸ 1 with pain in muscles ▸ 2 firm & difficult to bend ▸ 3 not moving easily ▸ 4 mixture: very thick ▸ 5 formal/controlled ▸ 6 more severe than usual ▸ 7 containing much alcohol ▸ + PHRASES 1. ) if you are stiff or a… … Usage of the words and phrases in modern English
stiff — [[t]stɪf[/t]] adj. stiff•er, stiff•est, n. adv. v. 1) rigid or firm; difficult or impossible to bend or flex: a stiff collar[/ex] 2) not moving or working easily 3) (of a person or animal) not supple; moving with difficulty, as from cold, age,… … From formal English to slang
stiff´-neck´ed|ness — stiff necked «STIHF NEHKT», adjective. 1. having a stiff neck. 2. Figurative. stubborn; obstinate: »The stiff necked old aristocrat... (George Gissing). SYNONYM(S): mulish, intractable, refractory. –stiff´ neck´ed|ness, noun … Useful english dictionary
Stiff-neckedness — Stiff neck ed*ness, n. The quality or state of being stiff necked; stubbornness. [1913 Webster] … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
stiff-necked — stiff necked; stiff necked·ly; stiff necked·ness; … English syllables
stiff-neckedness — stiff necked·ness … English syllables

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stiff´ness

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stiff´ness

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