straighten

[ streyt-n ]
See synonyms for straighten on Thesaurus.com
verb (used with or without object)
  1. to make or become straight in direction, form, position, character, conduct, condition, etc. (often followed by up or out).

Origin of straighten

1
First recorded in 1535–45; straight + -en1

Other words from straighten

  • straight·en·er, noun
  • o·ver·straight·en, verb
  • pre·straight·en, verb (used with object)
  • re·straight·en, verb
  • un·straight·ened, adjective
  • well-straightened, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use straighten in a sentence

  • When Scarface was very old he made a shaft-straightener of a piece of reindeer horn.

    The Later Cave-Men | Katharine Elizabeth Dopp
  • The straightener shook his head at this, and laughingly replied that the cure must have been due to nature.

  • On the arrival of the straightener he told his story, and expressed his fear that his morals must be permanently impaired.

  • It is hardly necessary to say that the office of straightener is one which requires long and special training.

    Erewhon | Samuel Butler
  • This may have been an ornament, an arrow-shaft straightener, or the holder for a drill or a fire-stick.

British Dictionary definitions for straighten

straighten

/ (ˈstreɪtən) /


verb(sometimes foll by up or out)
  1. to make or become straight

  2. (tr) to make neat or tidy: straighten your desk

Derived forms of straighten

  • straightener, noun

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012