tight

[tahyt] /taɪt/
adjective, tighter, tightest.
1.
firmly or closely fixed in place; not easily moved; secure:
a tight knot.
2.
drawn or stretched so as to be tense; taut.
3.
affording little or no extra room; fitting closely, especially too closely:
a tight collar.
4.
difficult to deal with or manage:
to be in a tight situation.
5.
of such close or compacted texture, or fitted together so closely, as to be impervious to water, air, steam, etc.:
a good, tight roof.
6.
concise; terse:
a tight style of writing.
7.
firm; rigid:
his tight control of the company.
8.
carefully arranged or organized and full; affording little leeway; compact:
a tight schedule.
9.
nearly even; close:
a tight race.
10.
Informal.
  1. close, as friends; familiar or intimate.
  2. united:
    The strikers are tight in their refusal to accept the proposed contract.
11.
parsimonious; stingy.
12.
Slang. drunk; tipsy.
13.
characterized by scarcity or eager demand; costly; limited; restricted:
a tight job market; tight money.
14.
Journalism. (of a newspaper) having more news available than is required for or utilizable in a particular issue.
15.
Baseball. inside (def 18).
16.
Scot. and North England. competent or skillful.
17.
tidy.
18.
neatly or well built or made.
adverb, tighter, tightest.
19.
in a tight manner; closely; firmly; securely; tensely:
Shut the door tight. The shirt fit tight across the shoulders.
20.
soundly or deeply:
to sleep tight.
Idioms
21.
sit tight, to take no action.
Origin
1400-50; late Middle English, sandhi variant of Middle English thight dense, solid, tight < Old Norse thēttr (cognate with Old English -thiht firm, solid, Dutch, German dicht tight, close, dense)
Related forms
tightly, adverb
tightness, noun
overtight, adjective
overtightly, adverb
overtightness, noun
Synonyms
11. close, niggardly, mean, grasping, frugal, sparing.
Examples from the web for tight
  • Mine is sealed up tight in a far corner of the garden.
  • Activate the camera's zoom function to capture tight shots and close ups, then share your movies easily with your loved ones.
  • His other fingers close underneath and hold the handle tight.
  • tight close-ups of talking heads build to full-page muscled poses.
  • For religious groups in this country, there is tight link between education and income.
  • My sense is that it has a lot more to do with the economy in general and with the tight academic job market in particular.
  • It also places such tight conditions on polygamy as to render the practice virtually impossible.
  • For years, surgeons have sought a substance that could create an air tight seal over a surgical wound.
  • Repeat on remaining two sides, then staple all around the edges, pulling cloth tight.
  • Progress is so slow in higher education, particularly in tight budget times.
British Dictionary definitions for tight

tight

/taɪt/
adjective
1.
stretched or drawn so as not to be loose; taut: a tight cord
2.
fitting or covering in a close manner: a tight dress
3.
held, made, fixed, or closed firmly and securely: a tight knot
4.
  1. of close and compact construction or organization, esp so as to be impervious to water, air, etc
  2. (in combination): watertight, airtight
5.
unyielding or stringent: to keep a tight hold on resources
6.
cramped or constricted: a tight fit
7.
mean or miserly
8.
difficult and problematic: a tight situation
9.
hardly profitable: a tight bargain
10.
(economics)
  1. (of a commodity) difficult to obtain; in excess demand
  2. (of funds, money, etc) difficult and expensive to borrow because of high demand or restrictive monetary policy
  3. (of markets) characterized by excess demand or scarcity with prices tending to rise Compare easy (sense 8)
11.
(of a match or game) very close or even
12.
(of a team or group, esp of a pop group) playing well together, in a disciplined coordinated way
13.
(informal) drunk
14.
(informal) (of a person) showing tension
15.
(archaic or dialect) neat
adverb
16.
in a close, firm, or secure way: pull it tight
17.
sit tight
  1. to wait patiently; bide one's time
  2. to maintain one's position, stand, or opinion firmly
18.
sleep tight, to sleep soundly
Derived Forms
tightly, adverb
tightness, noun
Word Origin
C14: probably variant of thight, from Old Norse thēttr close; related to Middle High German dīhte thick
Word Origin and History for tight
adj.

mid-15c., "dense, close, compact," from Middle English thight, from Old Norse þettr "watertight, close in texture, solid," from Proto-Germanic *thenkhtuz (cf. second element in Old English meteþiht "stout from eating;" Middle High German dihte "dense, thick," German dicht "dense, tight," Old High German gidigan, German gediegen "genuine, solid, worthy"), from PIE root *tenk- "to become firm, curdle, thicken" (cf. Irish techt "curdled, coagulated," Lithuanian tankus "close, tight," Persian tang "tight," Sanskrit tanakti "draws together, contracts").

Sense of "drawn, stretched" is from 1570s; meaning "fitting closely" (as of garments) is from 1779; that of "evenly matched" (of a contest, bargain, etc.) is from 1828, American English; that of "drunk" is from 1830; that of "close, sympathetic" is from 1956. Tight-assed "unwilling to relax" is attested from 1903. Tight-laced is recorded from 1741 in both the literal and figurative senses. Tight-lipped is first attested 1876.

Slang definitions & phrases for tight

tight

adjective
  1. Parsimonious; tight-fisted; stingy: He is tight in his dealings (1805+)
  2. (Variations: as a drum [or a lord or a mink] may be added) Drunk: Little tight, honey?/ I wasn't especially tight (1830+)
  3. Close; sympathetic: John and Mary are very tight (1956+)
  4. Attractive; cool: Renee's wig is tight (1980s+ Students)
Related Terms

sit tight


Idioms and Phrases with tight

tight

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