Stiffen

/ˈstɪfən/ verb

Definition

To become or make something rigid, stiff, or harder; to strengthen or harden.

Etymology

From Old English 'stif' meaning 'stiff' or 'rigid,' plus the suffix '-en.' The word has been in English for over a thousand years with remarkably stable meaning.

Kelly Says

Your body 'stiffens' in fear as a biological response—muscles tense and blood flows to large muscles for fight-or-flight, which is why people literally can't move when terrified, and why stretching helps calm anxiety.

Translations

AMአማርኛ
yird
ARالعربية
تصلب
tas-lab
BNবাংলা
কঠিন হওয়া
kath-in ho-wa
CACatalà
endurir
en-doo-rir
CSČeština
zatvrdit
za-tvrd-it
DADansk
stift
stifft
DEDeutsch
ver härten
fer har-ten
ELΕλληνικά
στερεοποιηθεί
ste-re-o-poi-thei
ESEspañol
endurecer
en-doo-re-ser
FAفارسی
سخت شدن
sokh-t sho-den
FISuomi
jäykistyä
jye-k-is-ty-a
FRFrançais
raffermir
ra-fer-meer
GUGU
કઠણ
kath-an
HAHA
tsofa
tso-fa
HEעברית
להתקשות
le-hit-kas-het
HIहिन्दी
कठोर होना
kath-or ho-na
HUMagyar
keményedni
kem-yen-ed-ni
IDBahasa Indonesia
ketat
ke-tat
IGIG
kpo
kpo
ITItaliano
indurire
in-doo-ri-re
JA日本語
硬くなる
kat-su-ku-nar-u
KKKK
қатты
qat-ty
KMKM
រឹង
reung
KO한국어
뻣뻣해지다
ppeot-ppeot-hae-ji-da
MRMR
ठोस
thos
MSBahasa Melayu
ketat
ke-tat
MYမြန်မာ
ကြမ်း
kya-m
NLNederlands
stijf
stief
NONorsk
stivere
sti-ve-re
PAPA
ਠ sonda
thh son-da
PLPolski
stwardniać
st-vard-nia-ch
PTPortuguês
endurecer
en-doo-re-ser
RORomână
a se întări
a se en-tari
RUРусский
уплотнять
u-p-lot-nyat
SVSvenska
stellast
ste-las-t
SWKiswahili
kuja
koo-ja
TAதமிழ்
நெருக்கமாக
ner-uk-ka-ma-ga
TEతెలుగు
కఠినం
ka-ti-na-m
THไทย
แข็ง
kaeng
TLTL
matigas
ma-tee-gas
TRTürkçe
sertleşmek
sert-lesh-mek
UKУкраїнська
зміцнювати
z-mit-s-nyu-vaty
URاردو
مختص
mokhtas
VITiếng Việt
giữ cứng
ghee-cu-ng
YOYO
kọ́
ko
ZH中文
变硬
biàn yìng
ZUZU
ngcwele
ng-cwe-le

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