Tighten Meaning
/ˈtaɪ.tən/Definition, CEFR level B1, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
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Definition
verbTo make tighter.
verbTo become tighter.
Sentence Examples
To make our house payments, we're going to have to tighten our belts.
Tighten the strap around the suitcase.
Small businesses will have to tighten their belts to survive.
CEFR Practice Quiz
You need to ____ the screws to secure the shelf.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
I need to ____ the screws on the leg of the wooden kitchen table because it has become a bit wobbly today.
Word Origin & History
Synchronically equivalent to tight + -en, but actually derived from Middle English tighten, from Old English tyhtan, thus originally unrelated to tight (Old English *þiht).
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"Just where I please, with tighten;d rein / I'll urge thee round the dusty plain."
— 1760, Francis Fawkes, Works of Anacreon, Sappho, Bion, Moschus, and Musæus translated into English by a gentleman of Cambridge:
Explore More B1 Vocabulary Words
CEFR Practice Quiz
You need to ____ the screws to secure the shelf.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
I need to ____ the screws on the leg of the wooden kitchen table because it has become a bit wobbly today.