Adjacent Words

Tight definitions

	Tweet

Webster's 1828 Dictionary

TIGHT, a. [L. taceo; that is, close, closely compressed.]
1. Close; compact; not loose or open; having the joints so close that no fluid can enter or escape; not leaky; as a tight ship, or a tight cask.
2. Close; not admitting much air; as a tight room.
3. Sitting close to the body; as a tight coat or other garment.
4. Close; not having holes or crevices; not loose; applied to many vessels, etc.
5. Close; hard; as a tight bargain. [In common use in America.]
6. Close; parsimonious; saving; as a man tight in his dealings. [In common use in America.]
7. Closely dressed; not ragged.
I'll spin and card, and keep our children tight.
8. Hardy; adroit.
[Note. This is the taugt or taught of seamen, applied to a rope stretched. The primary sense is strained.]

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

adj
1: closely constrained or constricted or constricting; "tight skirts"; "he hated tight starched collars"; "fingers closed in a tight fist"; "a tight feeling in his chest" [ant: loose]
2: pulled or drawn tight; "taut sails"; "a tight drumhead"; "a tight rope" [syn: taut, tight]
3: set so close together as to be invulnerable to penetration; "in tight formation"; "a tight blockade"
4: pressed tightly together; "with lips compressed" [syn: compressed, tight]
5: (used of persons or behavior) characterized by or indicative of lack of generosity; "a mean person"; "he left a miserly tip" [syn: mean, mingy, miserly, tight]
6: affected by scarcity and expensive to borrow; "tight money"; "a tight market"
7: of such close construction as to be impermeable; "a tight roof"; "warm in our tight little house" [ant: leaky]
8: of textiles; "a close weave"; "smooth percale with a very tight weave" [syn: close, tight]
9: securely or solidly fixed in place; rigid; "the bolts are tight"
10: (of a contest or contestants) evenly matched; "a close contest"; "a close election"; "a tight game" [syn: close, tight]
11: very drunk [syn: besotted, blind drunk, blotto, crocked, cockeyed, fuddled, loaded, pie-eyed, pissed, pixilated, plastered, slopped, sloshed, smashed, soaked, soused, sozzled, squiffy, stiff, tight, wet]
12: exasperatingly difficult to handle or circumvent; "a nasty problem"; "a good man to have on your side in a tight situation" [syn: nasty, tight]
13: demanding strict attention to rules and procedures; "rigorous discipline"; "tight security"; "stringent safety measures" [syn: rigorous, stringent, tight]
14: packed closely together; "they stood in a tight little group"; "hair in tight curls"; "the pub was packed tight" adv
1: firmly or closely; "held fast to the rope"; "her foot was stuck fast"; "held tight" [syn: fast, tight]
2: in an attentive manner; "he remained close on his guard" [syn: close, closely, tight]

Merriam Webster's

I. adjective Etymology: Middle English tiht, thyht dense, solid, watertight, of Scandinavian origin; akin to Old Norse th?ttr tight; akin to Middle High German d?hte thick, Sanskrit tanakti it causes to coagulate Date: 14th century 1. a. having elements close together <a tight formation> <a tight line of type> b. so close in structure as to prevent passage or escape (as of liquid, gas, or light) <a tight ship> <a tight seal> — compare lightproof, watertight c. fitting very close to the body <tight jeans>; also too snug <tight shoes> d. (1) closely packed ; very full <a tight bale of hay> (2) barely allowing time for completion <a tight schedule> <tight deadlines> e. allowing little or no room for free motion or movement <a tight connection> <a tight crawl space>; also having a small radius <a tight turn> 2. a. strongly fixed or held ; secure <a tight jar lid> <a tight grip on the ladder> b. (1) not slack or loose ; taut <kept the reins tight> <a tight knot> <a tight drumhead>; also marked by firmness and muscle tone <a tight stomach> (2) marked by unusual tension (as in the face or body) <lips tight with anger> <a family tight with fear> 3. chiefly dialect capable, competent 4. a. difficult to cope with <in a tight spot financially> b. relatively difficult to obtain <money is tight just now>; also characterized by such difficulty <a tight job market> c. not liberal in giving ; stingy <tight with a penny> 5. characterized by little difference in the relative positions of contestants with respect to final outcome ; close <a tight race for mayor> 6. somewhat drunk 7. a. characterized by firmness or strictness in control or application or in attention to details <tight zoning codes> <tight security> <ran a tight newsroom> <keeps a tight hand on her investments> b. marked by control or discipline in expression or style ; having little or no extraneous matter <tight writing> c. characterized by a polished style and precise arrangements in music performance 8. having a close personal or working relationship ; intimate <in tight with the boss> 9. being such that the subject fills the frame <filming a tight close-up> • tightly adverb • tightness noun II. adverb Date: 1680 1. fast, tightly, firmly <the door was shut tight> 2. in a sound manner ; soundly <sleep tight>

Oxford Reference Dictionary

adj., n., & adv. --adj. 1 closely held, drawn, fastened, fitting, etc. (a tight hold; a tight skirt). 2 closely and firmly put together (a tight joint). 3 (of clothes etc.) too closely fitting (my shoes are rather tight). 4 impermeable, impervious, esp. (in comb.) to a specified thing (watertight). 5 tense; stretched so as to leave no slack (a tight bowstring). 6 colloq. drunk. 7 colloq. (of a person) mean, stingy. 8 a (of money or materials) not easily obtainable. b (of a money market) in which money is tight. 9 a (of precautions, a programme, etc.) stringent, demanding. b presenting difficulties (a tight situation). 10 produced by or requiring great exertion or pressure (a tight squeeze). 11 (of control etc.) strictly imposed. --adv. tightly (hold tight!). Phrases and idioms: tight corner (or place or spot) a difficult situation. tight-fisted stingy. tight-fitting (of a garment) fitting (often too) close to the body. tight-lipped with or as with the lips compressed to restrain emotion or speech. Derivatives: tightly adv. tightness n. Etymology: prob. alt. of thight f. ON théttr watertight, of close texture

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Tie Tie, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Tied(Obs. Tight); p. pr. & vb. n. Tying.] [OE. ti?en, teyen, AS. t[=i]gan, ti['e]gan, fr. te['a]g, te['a]h, a rope; akin to Icel. taug, and AS. te['o]n to draw, to pull. See Tug, v. t., and cf. Tow to drag.] 1. To fasten with a band or cord and knot; to bind. ``Tie the kine to the cart.'' --1 Sam. vi. 7. My son, keep thy father's commandment, and forsake not the law of thy mother: bind them continually upon thine heart, and tie them about thy neck. --Prov. vi. 20,21. 2. To form, as a knot, by interlacing or complicating a cord; also, to interlace, or form a knot in; as, to tie a cord to a tree; to knit; to knot. ``We do not tie this knot with an intention to puzzle the argument.'' --Bp. Burnet. 3. To unite firmly; to fasten; to hold. In bond of virtuous love together tied. --Fairfax. 4. To hold or constrain by authority or moral influence, as by knotted cords; to oblige; to constrain; to restrain; to confine. Not tied to rules of policy, you find Revenge less sweet than a forgiving mind. --Dryden. 5. (Mus.) To unite, as notes, by a cross line, or by a curved line, or slur, drawn over or under them. 6. To make an equal score with, in a contest; to be even with. To ride and tie. See under Ride. To tie down. (a) To fasten so as to prevent from rising. (b) To restrain; to confine; to hinder from action. To tie up, to confine; to restrain; to hinder from motion or action.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Tight Tight, obs. p. p. of Tie. --Spenser.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Tight Tight, a. [Compar. Tighter; superl. Tightest.] [OE. tight, thiht; probably of Scand. origin; cf. Icel. ?[=e]ttr, Dan. t[ae]t, Sw. t["a]t: akin to D. & G. dicht thick, tight, and perhaps to E. thee to thrive, or to thick. Cf. Taut.] 1. Firmly held together; compact; not loose or open; as, tight cloth; a tight knot. 2. Close, so as not to admit the passage of a liquid or other fluid; not leaky; as, a tight ship; a tight cask; a tight room; -- often used in this sense as the second member of a compound; as, water-tight; air-tight. 3. Fitting close, or too close, to the body; as, a tight coat or other garment. 4. Not ragged; whole; neat; tidy. Clad very plain, but clean and tight. --Evelyn. I'll spin and card, and keep our children tight. --Gay. 5. Close; parsimonious; saving; as, a man tight in his dealings. [Colloq.] 6. Not slack or loose; firmly stretched; taut; -- applied to a rope, chain, or the like, extended or stretched out. 7. Handy; adroit; brisk. [Obs.] --Shak. 8. Somewhat intoxicated; tipsy. [Slang] 9. (Com.) Pressing; stringent; not easy; firmly held; dear; -- said of money or the money market. Cf. Easy, 7.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Tight Tight, v. t. To tighten. [Obs.]

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(tighter, tightest) Frequency: The word is one of the 3000 most common words in English. 1. Tight clothes or shoes are rather small and fit closely to your body. His jeans were too tight. ? loose ADJ • tightly He buttoned his collar tightly round his thick neck. ADV: ADV with v 2. If you hold someone or something tight, you hold them firmly and securely. She just fell into my arms, clutching me tight for a moment... Hold on tight! ADV: ADV after v • Tight is also an adjective. As he and Henrietta passed through the gate he kept a tight hold of her arm. ADJ: usu ADJ n • tightly She climbed back into bed and wrapped her arms tightly round her body. ADV: ADV after v 3. Tight controls or rules are very strict. The measures include tight control of media coverage... Security is tight this week at the polling sites. ADJ • tightly The internal media was tightly controlled by the government during the war. ADV: ADV after v, ADV -ed 4. Something that is shut tight is shut very firmly. I keep the flour and sugar in individual jars, sealed tight with their glass lids... She kept her eyes tight closed. ADV: ADV -ed, ADV after v • tightly Pemberton frowned and closed his eyes tightly... ADV: ADV after v, ADV -ed 5. Skin, cloth, or string that is tight is stretched or pulled so that it is smooth or straight. My skin feels tight and lacking in moisture... ADJ • tightly Her sallow skin was drawn tightly across the bones of her face. ADV: ADV with v 6. Tight is used to describe a group of things or an amount of something that is closely packed together. She curled up in a tight ball, with her knees tucked up at her chin... The men came in a tight group. ADJ: usu ADJ n • Tight is also an adverb. The people sleep on sun loungers packed tight, end to end. ADV • tightly Many animals travel in tightly packed lorries and are deprived of food, water and rest. ADV: ADV after v, ADV -ed 7. If a part of your body is tight, it feels rather uncomfortable and painful, for example because you are ill, anxious, or angry. It is better to stretch the tight muscles first... = taut ADJ • tightness Heart disease often shows itself first as pain or tightness in the chest. 8. A tight group of people is one whose members are closely linked by beliefs, feelings, or interests. We're a tight group, so we do keep in touch. = close ADJ 9. A tight bend or corner is one that changes direction very quickly so that you cannot see very far round it. They collided on a tight bend and both cars were extensively damaged. = sharp ADJ: usu ADJ n 10. A tight schedule or budget allows very little time or money for unexpected events or expenses. It's difficult to cram everything into a tight schedule... Financially things are a bit tight. ADJ 11. A tight contest is one where none of the competitors has a clear advantage or looks likely to win, so that it is difficult to say who the winner will be. It was a very tight match... ADJ 12. If you say that someone is tight, you disapprove of them because they are unwilling to spend their money. (INFORMAL) What about getting new ones–Are you so tight you won't even spend three roubles? = tight-fisted, mean, stingy ADJ [disapproval] 13. see also airtight, skin-tight 14. If you are in a tight corner or in a tight spot, you are in a difficult situation. (INFORMAL) That puts the president in a tight spot if the vote is not a resounding 'yes'... PHRASE: usu prep PHR 15. You can say 'sleep tight' to someone when they are going to bed as an affectionate way of saying that you hope they will sleep well. Good night, Davey. Sleep tight. CONVENTION 16. to keep a tight rein on: see rein to sit tight: see sit

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

a. 1. Compact, firm, firmly held together. 2. Close, fast, not open, not leaky. 3. Close-fitting, not loose. 4. Tense, stretched, taught. 5. Close. 6. Whole, neat. 7. (Colloq.) Fuddled, boozy, disguised, mellow, in liquor, high, in one's cups, somewhat intoxicated. 8. (Colloq., U. S.) Stringent (as the money market). 9. (Colloq., U. S.) Parsimonious, stingy, penurious, hard, close-fisted.

Moby Thesaurus

Spartan, abbreviated, abridged, afflicted, airtight, all ataunto, anal, angustifoliate, angustirostrate, angustisellate, angustiseptal, aposiopestic, arduous, ataunt, austere, autocratic, avaricious, ballproof, bent, binding, boiled, bombed, bombproof, bonded, boozy, brief, brusque, bulletproof, bungup and bilge-free, burglarproof, canned, cemented, cheap, cheeseparing, chinchy, chintzy, circumscribed, clipped, close, close-fitting, closefisted, closely, cockeyed, cockeyed drunk, compact, compactly, compendious, compressed, concise, condensed, confined, connected, consecutive, consistent, constricted, continuous, contracted, corrosionproof, cramp, cramped, crisp, critical, crocked, crocko, crowded, curt, cut, dampproof, dangerous, dear, dense, densely, difficult, dinky, distressing, disturbing, docked, dragged out, drawn, drawn out, drunk, drunken, dustproof, dusttight, elevated, elliptic, elongated, epigrammatic, exacting, exiguous, expensive, extended, fast, fastened, fire-resisting, fireproof, firm, firmly, fixed, fixedly, flameproof, foolproof, fried, fuddled, gasproof, gastight, glued, gnomic, half-seas over, hard and fast, hardfisted, harsh, hazardous, hermetic, hermetically sealed, high, holeproof, illiberal, illuminated, impenetrable, impermeable, impervious, impervious to, incapacious, incommodious, inebriated, inflexible, infrequent, inseparably, intoxicated, isthmian, isthmic, jammed, joined, laconic, leakproof, lengthened, lightproof, lighttight, limited, lit, lit up, loaded, lubricated, lushy, meager, mean, mingy, miserly, muzzy, narrow, near, neat, niggardly, noiseproof, oiled, oilproof, oiltight, orderly, organized, parsimonious, penny-pinching, penurious, perilous, pickled, piddling, pie-eyed, pinchfisted, pinching, pissed, pissy-eyed, pithy, plastered, pointed, pokerlike, polluted, poor, potted, precarious, problematic, prolongated, prolonged, proof, proof against, protracted, pruned, pulled, punctureproof, punishing, raddled, rainproof, raintight, ramrodlike, rare, renitent, reserved, resistant, restricted, restrictive, rigid, rigorous, risky, rodlike, rough, rustproof, save-all, scant, scanty, scarce, scattered, scrimping, scrimpy, sealed, secure, secured, securely, seldom met with, seldom seen, sententious, sequent, sequential, serial, set, severe, shatterproof, shellacked, shellproof, shipshape, short, short and sweet, shortened, shut fast, skimping, skimpy, skintight, skunk-drunk, sleek, slender, slick, slim, smart, smashed, smokeproof, smoketight, snug, soaked, solid, solidly, soundproof, soused, sparse, spotty, sprinkled, spruce, spun out, squiffy, starched, starchy, staunch, steadfast, steadfastly, stern, stewed, sticky, stiff, stiff as buckram, stingy, stinko, stormproof, stormtight, straggling, strained, strait, stretched, stretched out, strict, stringent, strung out, stuck, succinct, summary, swacked, synopsized, taciturn, tanked, taped, taut, tenacious, tense, terse, thick, thin, ticklish, tiddly, tidy, tight-fisted, tightened, tightfisted, tightly, tipsy, to the point, touch-and-go, touchy, tough, tricksy, tricky, trig, trim, truncated, trying, uncompromising, under the influence, ungenerous, uninterrupted, unrelaxed, unyielding, upsetting, virgate, water-repellant, waterproof, watertight, weatherproof, wedged, well-cared-for, well-groomed, windproof, windtight, woozy