An alternative or archaic spelling of 'taut,' meaning stretched tight or pulled firmly.
This is a variant spelling of Middle English and Early Modern English 'taut' or 'taught,' which came from Old Norse 'þéttr' meaning tight or dense. The spelling 'tought' is largely obsolete in modern English.
Many old spellings like 'tought' survived in some English dialects and historical documents, which is why reading Shakespeare or old nautical logs can feel like learning a slightly different language!
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