Stiff Definition

stĭf

stiffed, stiffest, stiffing, stiffs, stiffer

adjective

stiffest, stiffer

Hard to bend or stretch; rigid; firm; not flexible or pliant.

Webster's New World

Hard to move or operate; not free or limber.

Webster's New World

Not moving or operating easily or freely; resistant.

A stiff hinge.

American Heritage

Lacking ease or comfort of movement; not limber.

A stiff neck.

American Heritage

Stretched tight; taut; tense.

Webster's New World

Synonyms:

Antonyms:

adverb

To a stiff condition.

Webster's New World

To a complete extent; totally.

Bored stiff.

American Heritage

Completely; thoroughly.

Scared stiff.

Webster's New World

Synonyms:

Synonyms:
stiffly

noun

stiffs

A corpse.

Webster's New World

An excessively formal or constrained person.

Webster's New World

A drunken person.

Webster's New World

A drunk.

American Heritage

An awkward or rough person.

Webster's New World

Synonyms:

verb

stiffed, stiffing

To tip (someone) inadequately or not at all, as for a service rendered.

Paid the dinner check but stiffed the waiter.

American Heritage

To cheat (someone), as by not paying.

Webster's New World

To fail to leave a tip for.

Webster's New World

To fail to give or supply (something expected or promised).

American Heritage

To fail to pay that which one owes (implicitly or explicitly) to another, especially by departing hastily.

Realizing he had forgotten his wallet, he stiffed the taxi driver when the cab stopped for a red light.

Wiktionary

Other Word Forms of Stiff

Noun

Singular:

stiff

Plural:

stiffs

Adjective

Base Form:

stiff

Comparative:

stiffer

Superlative:

stiffest

Origin of Stiff

Old English stÄ«f, from Proto-Germanic *stÄ«faz (compare Dutch stijf, German steif), from Proto-Indo-European *stÄ«pos (compare Latin stipare, from which English stevedore).

From Wiktionary
Middle English from Old English stīf

From American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition