stiffly
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stiff
(stĭf)adj. stiff·er, stiff·est
1. Difficult to bend or fold: stiff new shoes; a stiff collar.
2.
a. Not moving or operating easily or freely; resistant: a stiff hinge.
b. Lacking ease or comfort of movement; not limber: a stiff neck.
3. Not liquid, loose, or fluid; thick: stiff dough.
4.
a. Reserved in manner or strict in observing decorum: a stiff commanding officer.
b. Lacking grace or easy charm; very formal: a stiff writing style.
5. Firm, as in purpose; resolute: stiff in their opposition.
6. Having a strong, swift, steady force or movement: a stiff current; a stiff breeze.
7. Potent or strong: a stiff drink.
8.
a. Difficult to deal with, do, or meet: stiff requirements for admission; a stiff examination.
b. Harsh or severe: a stiff penalty.
c. Excessively high or onerous: a stiff price.
9. Nautical Not heeling over much in spite of great wind or the press of the sail.
adv.
1. In a stiff manner: frozen stiff.
2. To a complete extent; totally: bored stiff.
n. Slang
1. A corpse.
2. A person regarded as constrained, priggish, or overly formal.
3. A drunk.
4. A person: a lucky stiff; just an ordinary working stiff.
5. A hobo; a tramp.
6. A person who tips poorly.
tr.v. stiffed, stiff·ing, stiffs Slang
1. To tip (someone) inadequately or not at all, as for a service rendered: paid the dinner check but stiffed the waiter.
2.
a. To cheat (someone) of something owed: My roommate stiffed me out of last month's rent.
b. To fail to give or supply (something expected or promised).
[Middle English, from Old English stīf.]
stiff′ish adj.
stiff′ly adv.
stiff′ness n.
Synonyms: stiff, rigid, inflexible, inelastic, tense1
These adjectives describe what is very firm and does not easily bend or give way. Stiff, the least specific, refers to what can be flexed only with difficulty (a brush with stiff bristles); with reference to persons it often suggests a lack of ease, cold formality, or fixity, as of purpose: "stiff in opinions" (John Dryden).
Rigid and inflexible apply to what cannot be bent without damage or deformation (a table of rigid plastic; an inflexible knife blade); figuratively they describe what does not relent or yield: "under the dictates of a rigid disciplinarian" (Thomas B. Aldrich)."In religion the law is written, and inflexible, never to do evil" (Oliver Goldsmith).
Inelastic refers largely to what will not stretch and spring back without marked physical change: inelastic construction materials. By extension it implies an absence of change in the face of changing circumstances: "My little pension is woefully inelastic" (Flann O'Brien).
Tense means stretched tight and figuratively applies to what is marked by tautness or strain: "that tense moment of expectation" (Arnold Bennett).
These adjectives describe what is very firm and does not easily bend or give way. Stiff, the least specific, refers to what can be flexed only with difficulty (a brush with stiff bristles); with reference to persons it often suggests a lack of ease, cold formality, or fixity, as of purpose: "stiff in opinions" (John Dryden).
Rigid and inflexible apply to what cannot be bent without damage or deformation (a table of rigid plastic; an inflexible knife blade); figuratively they describe what does not relent or yield: "under the dictates of a rigid disciplinarian" (Thomas B. Aldrich)."In religion the law is written, and inflexible, never to do evil" (Oliver Goldsmith).
Inelastic refers largely to what will not stretch and spring back without marked physical change: inelastic construction materials. By extension it implies an absence of change in the face of changing circumstances: "My little pension is woefully inelastic" (Flann O'Brien).
Tense means stretched tight and figuratively applies to what is marked by tautness or strain: "that tense moment of expectation" (Arnold Bennett).
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:
Switch to new thesaurus
| Adv. | 1. | stiffly - in a stiff manner; "his hands lay stiffly" |
| 2. | stiffly - in a rigid manner; "the body was rigidly erect"; "he sat bolt upright" |
Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2012 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.
Translations
بِصَلابَه
upjatě
stift
makacsul
af stífni
úpäto
sert şekildesoğuk
stiffly
[ˈstɪflɪ] ADV1. (= firmly) the napkins were stiffly starched → las servilletas estaban almidonadas y tiesas
Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005
Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005
Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007
Collins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995
stiff
(stif) adjective1. rigid or firm, and not easily bent, folded etc. He has walked with a stiff leg since he injured his knee; stiff cardboard.
2. moving, or moved, with difficulty, pain etc. I can't turn the key – the lock is stiff; I woke up with a stiff neck; I felt stiff the day after the climb.
3. (of a cooking mixture etc) thick, and not flowing. a stiff dough.
4. difficult to do. a stiff examination.
5. strong. a stiff breeze.
6. (of a person or his manner etc) formal and unfriendly. I received a stiff note from the bank manager.
ˈstiffly adverbˈstiffness noun
ˈstiffen verb
to make or become stiff(er). You can stiffen cotton with starch; He stiffened when he heard the unexpected sound.
ˈstiffening noun material used to stiffen something. The collar has some stiffening in it.
bore/scare stiff to bore or frighten very much.
Kernerman English Multilingual Dictionary © 2006-2013 K Dictionaries Ltd.