Synonyms for tense

Most common

tight · taut · strained · stressed · nervy · nervous

Synonyms by meaning

Adjective

Noun

Antonyms

relaxed, loose, relieved

All antonyms of tense →

Definitions

1. adj. 1

   Showing signs of stress or strain; not relaxed.

   You need to relax, all this overtime and stress is making you tense.

2. adj. 2

   Characterized by strain (on the nerves, emotions, etc). (Compare charged.)

3. n. 1

   The property of indicating the point in time at which an action or state of being occurs or exists.

   Dyirbal verbs are not inflected for tense.

Related words

Word family

tenseness tend tension tent

Phrases

continuous tense imperfect tense progressive tense past imperfect tense pluperfect tense past historic tense perfect tense tense up

Forms

Plural

tenses → times…

Example sentences

• stressed Spider mites attack ivies that are water-stressed.
• strained Yanni and Skura have a very strained relationship.
• taut The hairs on the violin bow should not be too taut.
• nervous Waiting a long time for a friend makes me nervous.

Popularity over time

Use in printed books, per decade from 1850 to 2019.

By length

4 letters

time¹, edgy², taut¹

5 letters

tight¹, rigid², itchy², jumpy², antsy², nervy²

6 letters

taught¹, strict¹, uneasy³, fortis²

7 letters

nervous², jittery³, restive², fidgety

8 letters

electric³, stressed¹, restless², strained¹

9 letters

stretched¹, unrelaxed

10 letters

overstrung

11 letters

suspenseful³

The small number after each word is its number of syllables (edgy² = 2 syllables).

In other languages

Français

tendu

Italiano

teso