/taɪt/
OriginFrom 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”).
Cognate with Scots ticht, West Frisian ticht, Danish tæt, Icelandic þéttur (“dense”), Norwegian tett, Swedish tät, Dutch dicht (“dense”), German dicht (“dense”).
The current form with t- /t/ rather than etymologically-expected th- /θ/ arose in Middle English under the influence of the etymologically-unrelated verbs tighten and tight, which come from a different Proto-Indo-European root (starting with *d- and thus regularly having t-).
- Firmly held together; compact; not loose or open.
“a tight sponge; a tight knot”
“Pull your seatbelts tight before takeoff.”
- Unyielding or firm.
“tight control on a situation”
- Under high tension; taut.
“Make sure to pull the rope tight.”
“The face which emerged was not reassuring. It was blunt and grey, the nose springing thick and flat from high on the frontal bone of the forehead, whilst his eyes were narrow slits of dark in a tight ”
“The only negative from a comfortable first-half was the sight of Aston Villa’s Nathan Delfouneso being withdrawn with a tight hamstring after only 11 minutes.”
- colloquialScarce, hard to come by.
“I grew up in a poor neighborhood; money was very tight, but we made do.”
“China’s currency, the jenminpi, has remained stable; the Chinese assert that it is the "world’s most stable currency." This is generally conceded to be the result of the care with which the Chinese ec”
- figuratively, informalIntimate, close, close-knit, intimately friendly.
“We've grown tighter over the years.”
“The drawbacks of being in a too-tight couple (there's no room to blow your nose)”
- slangShort of money.
“I started gambling when you were about four. Your mom and I were pretty tight for cash and I thought what the heck, it could get us some quick money.”
- Narrow, such that it is difficult for something or someone to pass through it.
“The passageway was so tight we could barely get through.”
“They flew in a tight formation.”
“England squeezed high and dominated the ball, penning Iceland back but the hosts kept the lines tight and it became clear that England would have to work for their openings.”
- Fitting close, or too close, to the body.
“tight clothing; a tight coat; My socks are too tight.”
- Of a turn, sharp, so that the timeframe for making it is narrow and following it is difficult.
“The mountain pass was made dangerous by its many tight corners.”
- Lacking holes; difficult to penetrate; waterproof.
“He reported the hull was tight and secure and did not leak a drop.”
“Security is tight inside and outside the building, guarded by a bewildering collection of soldiers, policemen and gendarmes. Relatives watch as prisoners in handcuffs and leg irons shuffle past.”
- Close, very similar in a value such as score or time.
“Frank ended up fourth in a tight finish, only three-quarter of a length from first money.”
“Syracuse had built another good first half lead of 11 points. In the second half, however, Kansas came back and the score was tight through the rest of the game. In the final seconds, Syracuse led 81-”
“[…] was a tight game and particularly low-scoring in the first half.”
- Well-rehearsed and accurate in execution.
“Their marching band is extremely tight.”
- Not conceding many goals.
“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.”
- slangIntoxicated; drunk.
“We went drinking and got tight.”
“And every single night when me da’ would come home tight he’d invite the neighbours out with this chorus.”
“I'm going to celebrate my divorce! And then I'm going to get tight.”
- slangExtraordinarily great or special.
“That is one tight bicycle!”
- Northern-England, slangMean; unfair; unkind.
“Reilly: Ey, Miss, hang on, hang on... can we come with y', Miss? Can we?
Digga: Go on, Miss, don't be tight, let's come.”
“"Ah leave him, ay!" goes one of the girls. "Don't be tight." I turns to her. "Don't you think it's tight terrorising old ladies? Ay?"”
“"That's right ... so even when life's a grind, the Thais keep smiling. They think the farang are a miserable lot who have to get drunk to enjoy themselves."
"Dutch, that's tight mate, I mean what's wr”
- Limited or restricted.
“We had a very tight schedule.”
“It is kept super-clean by helpful staff who still find the time to help customers with tight connections.”
- obsoleteNot ragged; whole; neat; tidy.
“clad very plain, but clean and tight”
“I'll spin and card, and keep our children tight.”
“Richard: But here she comes! [...] (Enter Rose — he is much struck by her.) By the Port Admiral, but she's a tight little craft!”
- obsoleteHandy; adroit; brisk.
“[S]ince we've sailed together, I've been conning over in my mind that the company of such miserable thieves and robbers was not to your liking, and would not suit such a tight lad with as good larning”
- Of a player, who plays very few hands.
- Using a strategy which involves playing very few hands.
- US, slangWith understeer, primarily used to describe NASCAR stock cars.
- New-York, slangAngry or irritated.
“"I was trying to be like a lady, but y'all be getting me tight!"”
- Firmly, so as not to come loose easily.
“Hold on tight to the rope.”
“'I had my eyes tight shut.'”
- Soundly.
“Good night, sleep tight.”
- obsoleteTo make tight; tighten.
- obsoleteTo make water-tight.
Formstighter(comparative) · tightest(superlative) · tights(present, singular, third-person) · tighting(participle, present) · tighted(participle, past) · tighted(past)