tight
//taɪt//
Forms
- Comparative
- tighter
- Superlative
- tightest
- Comparative
- tighter
- Superlative
- tightest
Definitions
1.Firmly held together; compact; not loose or open.
- He's a bit tight with his money.
- Make sure to pull the rope tight.
- We've grown tighter over the years.
2.Narrow, such that it is difficult for something or someone to pass through it.
- They flew in a tight formation.
- The passageway was so tight we could barely get through.
- The mountain pass was made dangerous by its many tight corners.
3.Well-rehearsed and accurate in execution.
- Their marching band is extremely tight.
- The odd thing was that Sunderland made the better start and showed early signs that they might pose serious problems to the Premier League’s tightest defence.
4.Intoxicated; drunk.(slang)
- We went drinking and got tight.
- I'm going to celebrate my divorce! And then I'm going to get tight.
- And every single night when me da’ would come home tight he’d invite the neighbours out with this chorus.
1.Firmly, so as not to come loose easily.
- Hold on tight to the rope.
- 'I had my eyes tight shut.'
2.Soundly.
Frequency
Overall
Uncommon· #3059
By learning goal
- Everyday conversation
- Rare
- General reading & writing
- Uncommon
- Academic
- Rare
- Literature
- Rare
Etymology
From Middle English tight, tyght, tyȝt, tiht, variants of thight, thiht, from Old English *þiht, *þīht (attested in meteþiht), from Proto-West Germanic *þį̄ht(ī), from Proto-Germanic *þinhtaz, from Proto-Indo-European *tenkt- (“dense, thick, tight”), from Proto-Indo-European *ten- (“to stretch, pull”).