tense

1. B1Countable

   A grammatical category that indicates the time at which a verb expresses an action or state.

   • "I sing" is in the present tense, and "I sang" is in the past tense.

   • English verbs have several tenses, including the present, past, and future tenses.

   • She is learning how to use different tenses to express her ideas accurately.

1. TransitiveIntransitive

   To make or become stiff and tight due to fear, nervousness, or anticipation.

   • His muscles tensed up when he heard the loud noise.

   • She felt her back and neck tense as she prepared to give her speech.

   • Despite trying to remain calm, he could feel his jaw tense.

   More examples

emotion

1. B2

   Experiencing a state of nervousness and worry; unable to relax.

   • She felt very tense while waiting for the results.

   • He was a bit tense before his job interview.

   • She seemed tense, so I asked if everything was alright.

2. B2

   Causing feelings of worry, nervousness, or anxiety.

   • The atmosphere of the negotiations became very tense.

   • Relations between the two countries became tense after the incident.

   • The air was tense with anticipation before the storm hit.

state

1. Stretched tightly, stiff, or not relaxed; in a state of physical tension.

   • Her shoulders felt tense after the long flight.

   • His back muscles felt tense from sitting for too long.

   • She needed to do some stretches to relax her tense leg muscles.

1. phoneticsspecialized

   Produced with a relatively greater degree of muscular effort and tension in the vocal tract.

   • In phonetics, vowels can be categorized into lax and tense vowels.

   • Tense sounds require more effort from the vocal muscles to produce.

   • It is important to distinguish between lax and tense sounds when learning pronunciation.