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tense

 - 10 dictionary results

tense

1  [tens] ,adjective, tens⋅er, tens⋅est, verb, tensed, tens⋅ing.
Use tense in a Sentence
–adjective
1. stretched tight, as a cord, fiber, etc.; drawn taut; rigid.
2. in a state of mental or nervous strain; high-strung; taut: a tense person.
3. characterized by a strain upon the nerves or feelings: a tense moment.
4. Phonetics. pronounced with relatively tense tongue muscles; narrow. Compare lax (def. 7).
–verb (used with object), verb (used without object)
5. to make or become tense.
Origin:
1660–70; < L tēnsus ptp. of tendere to stretch; see tend 1

Related forms:
tensely, adverb
tenseness, noun

tense

2  [tens] ,
–noun
1. a category of verbal inflection that serves chiefly to specify the time of the action or state expressed by the verb.
2. a set of such categories or constructions in a particular language.
3. the time, as past, present, or future, expressed by such a category.
4. such categories or constructions, or their meanings collectively.
Origin:
1275–1325; ME tens < MF < L tempus time

Related forms:
tenseless, adjective
tense⋅less⋅ly, adverb
tense⋅less⋅ness, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To tense
tense 1   (těns)   
adj.   tens·er, tens·est

  1. Tightly stretched; taut. See Synonyms at stiff, tight.

  2. In a state of mental or nervous tension.

  3. Characterized by nervous tension or suspense.

  4. Linguistics Enunciated with taut muscles, as the sound (ē) in keen.

tr. & intr.v.   tensed, tens·ing, tens·es
To make or become tense.

[Latin tēnsus, past participle of tendere, to stretch; see ten- in Indo-European roots.]
tense'ly adv., tense'ness n.
tense 2   (těns)   
n.  

  1. Any one of the inflected forms in the conjugation of a verb that indicates the time, such as past, present, or future, as well as the continuance or completion of the action or state.

  2. A set of tense forms indicating a particular time: the future tense.


[Middle English tens, from Old French, time, from Latin tempus.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
Cultural Dictionary

tense

An inflectional (see inflection) form of verbs; it expresses the time at which the action described by the verb takes place. The major tenses are past, present, and future. The verb in “I sing” is in the present tense; in “I sang,” past tense; in “I will sing,” future tense. Other tenses are the present perfect (“I have sung”), the past perfect (“I had sung”), and the future perfect (“I will have sung”).

The American Heritage® New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
Word Origin & History

tense  (adj.)
"stretched tight," 1670, from L. tensus, pp. of tendere "to stretch" (see tenet). Sense of "in a state of nervous tension" is first recorded 1821. The verb meaning "to make tense" is from 1676; intrans. sense of "to become tense" (often tense up) is recorded from 1946.

tense  (n.)
"form of a verb showing time of an action or state," c.1315, tens "time," also "tense of a verb" (1388), from O.Fr. tens "time" (11c.), from L. tempus (see temporal).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Medical Dictionary

Main Entry: 1tense
Pronunciation: 'ten(t)s
Function: adjective
Inflected Forms: tens·er; tens·est
1 : stretched tight : made taut or rigid tense —H. G. Armstrong>
2 : feeling or showing nervous tension —tense·ness noun

Main Entry: 2tense
Function: verb
Inflected Forms: tensed; tens·ing
transitive senses
: to make tense <tense amuscle> tense intransitive senses
: to become tense
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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Computing Dictionary

tense
Of programs, very clever and efficient. A tense piece of code often got that way because it was highly bummed, but sometimes it was just based on a great idea. A comment in a clever routine by Mike Kazar, once a grad-student hacker at CMU: "This routine is so tense it will bring tears to your eyes." A tense programmer is one who produces tense code.
[The Jargon File]

The Free On-line Dictionary of Computing, © 1993-2007 Denis Howe
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