| / English Dictionary |
STIFFNESS
| Pronunciation (US): |  | (GB): | |
I. (noun)
Sense 1
Meaning:
Excessive sternness
Example:
the rigors of boot camp
Synonyms:
hardness; harshness; inclemency; rigor; rigorousness; rigour; rigourousness; severeness; severity; stiffness
Classified under:
Nouns denoting attributes of people and objects
Hypernyms ("stiffness" is a kind of...):
sternness; strictness (uncompromising resolution)
Sense 2
Meaning:
The inelegance of someone stiff and unrelaxed (as by embarrassment)
Synonyms:
awkwardness; clumsiness; gracelessness; stiffness
Classified under:
Nouns denoting attributes of people and objects
Hypernyms ("stiffness" is a kind of...):
inelegance (the quality of lacking refinement and good taste)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "stiffness"):
woodenness (the quality of being wooden and awkward)
gaucherie; rusticity (the quality of being rustic or gauche)
Derivation:
stiff (rigidly formal)
Sense 3
Meaning:
Firm resoluteness in purpose or opinion or action
Example:
a charming host without any touch of stiffness or pomposity
Classified under:
Nouns denoting attributes of people and objects
Hypernyms ("stiffness" is a kind of...):
firmness; firmness of purpose; resoluteness; resolution; resolve (the trait of being resolute)
Derivation:
stiff (marked by firm determination or resolution; not shakable)
Sense 4
Meaning:
The property of moving with pain or difficulty
Example:
he awoke with a painful stiffness in his neck
Classified under:
Nouns denoting attributes of people and objects
Hypernyms ("stiffness" is a kind of...):
awkwardness; clumsiness (the carriage of someone whose movements and posture are ungainly or inelegant)
Derivation:
stiff (incapable of or resistant to bending)
Sense 5
Meaning:
The physical property of being inflexible and hard to bend
Classified under:
Nouns denoting attributes of people and objects
Hypernyms ("stiffness" is a kind of...):
inelasticity (the lack of elasticity)
Derivation:
stiff (incapable of or resistant to bending)
stiff (not moving or operating freely)
Context examples:
It causes pain, stiffness, and swelling.
(Joint Disorders, NIH: National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases)
Symptoms include muscle twitching, weakness, stiffness, and cramping; increased skin temperature, sweating, and heart rate; and problems with chewing, swallowing, speech, and breathing.
(Isaac syndrome, NCI Dictionary)
It causes joint pain and stiffness, and in some people swelling and tenderness of the joints.
(Joint lubricating fluid plays key role in osteoarthritic pain, University of Cambridge)
Bones under the cartilage may then rub together, causing pain, swelling, stiffness, and disability.
(Stem cells grown on scaffold mimic hip joint cartilage, NIH)
Charles looked on wistfully, wiped his watery eyes, but did not get up because of his stiffness.
(The Call of the Wild, by Jack London)
A question about whether an individual has or had difficulty moving their neck or shoulders because of stiffness.
(Difficulty Moving Neck and Shoulders due to Stiffness, NCI Thesaurus)
An ultrasound-based imaging technique used to examine the stiffness or elasticity of a tissue by applying mechanical compression or vibration to the tissue being imaged.
(Elastography, NCI Thesaurus)
Very slowly, because of his exceeding weakness and stiffness, he rolled over on his other side.
(Love of Life and Other Stories, by Jack London)
Current medicines often leave patients with involuntary movements, restlessness, stiffness and 'the shakes'.
(Key to Treating Schizophrenia May Be Found in Broccoli, The Titi Tudorancea Bulletin)
Ambrette seed oil is used for aches and stiffness and for its aromatic properties.
(Ambrette Seed Oil, NCI Thesaurus)
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