TIGHTNESS

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does tightness mean? 

• TIGHTNESS (noun)
  The noun TIGHTNESS has 5 senses:

1. a state occasioned by scarcity of money and a shortage of credit

2. a tight feeling in some part of the body

3. the spatial property of being crowded together

4. extreme stinginess

5. lack of movement or room for movement

  Familiarity information: TIGHTNESS used as a noun is common.

 Dictionary entry details 

• TIGHTNESS (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

A state occasioned by scarcity of money and a shortage of credit

Classified under:

Nouns denoting stable states of affairs

Synonyms:

stringency; tightness

Hypernyms ("tightness" is a kind of...):

deficiency; lack; want (the state of needing something that is absent or unavailable)

Derivation:

tight (affected by scarcity and expensive to borrow)

Sense 2

Meaning:

A tight feeling in some part of the body

Classified under:

Nouns denoting cognitive processes and contents

Synonyms:

constriction; tightness

Context example:

emotion caused a constriction of his throat

Hypernyms ("tightness" is a kind of...):

feeling (a physical sensation that you experience)

Derivation:

tight (closely constrained or constricted or constricting)

Sense 3

Meaning:

The spatial property of being crowded together

Classified under:

Nouns denoting attributes of people and objects

Synonyms:

compactness; concentration; denseness; density; tightness

Hypernyms ("tightness" is a kind of...):

spacing; spatial arrangement (the property possessed by an array of things that have space between them)

Derivation:

tight (set so close together as to be invulnerable to penetration)

Sense 4

Meaning:

Extreme stinginess

Classified under:

Nouns denoting attributes of people and objects

Synonyms:

closeness; meanness; minginess; niggardliness; niggardness; parsimoniousness; parsimony; tightfistedness; tightness

Hypernyms ("tightness" is a kind of...):

stinginess (a lack of generosity; a general unwillingness to part with money)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "tightness"):

littleness; pettiness; smallness (lack of generosity in trifling matters)

miserliness (total lack of generosity with money)

Derivation:

tight ((used of persons or behavior) characterized by or indicative of lack of generosity)

Sense 5

Meaning:

Lack of movement or room for movement

Classified under:

Nouns denoting attributes of people and objects

Synonyms:

tautness; tightness

Hypernyms ("tightness" is a kind of...):

immovability; immovableness (not capable of being moved or rearranged)

Antonym:

looseness (movement or space for movement)

Derivation:

tight (pulled or drawn tight)

 Context examples 

They include: • A cough that produces a lot of mucus • Shortness of breath, especially with physical activity • Wheezing • Chest tightness

(COPD, NIH: National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute)

A question about whether an individual feels or has felt tightness in the chest.

(Feels Tightness in the Chest, NCI Thesaurus)

A question about whether an individual has or had firmness or tightness.

(Have Firmness or Tightness, NCI Thesaurus)

A sensation of discomfort and tightness while moving a joint.

(Joint Stiffness, NCI Thesaurus)

Signs and symptoms include chest tightness, cough and wheezing.

(Byssinosis, NCI Thesaurus)

Children with asthma may experience wheezing, coughing, chest tightness, and trouble breathing, especially early in the morning or at night.

(Asthma in Children, NIH)

A drug used to treat symptoms of anxiety, such as feelings of fear, dread, uneasiness, and muscle tightness, that may occur as a reaction to stress.

(Antianxiety agent, NCI Dictionary)

It causes a cough that often brings up mucus, as well as shortness of breath, wheezing, and chest tightness.

(Acute Bronchitis, NIH: National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute)

The airways become inflamed and narrow, causing difficult breathing, wheezing (a whistling sound while breathing), tightness in the chest, and coughing.

(Infant Exposure to Allergens May Help Prevent Wheezing, NIH)

Symptoms include wheezing, coughing, tightness in the chest, shortness of breath, and rapid breathing.

(Asthma, NCI Dictionary)