m verb ~ (sth) (up) if you tense your muscles, or you
or your muscles tense,
they
become tight and stiff, especially because you are not relaxed (
%:
[V] His muscles
tensed as he got ready to run. {tk/'f.iSr O She tensed, hearing the strange
noise again. fijjp-7^f'gtoJ^ef, 0
[VN]
She tensed
her muscles in anticipation of the blow. 81 M$8M7JUll^lo o He tensed himself, listening to
see if anyone had followed him.
nervous or worried so that
you cannot relax ^ ^
'm-,
ten sile /'tensail; NAmE 'tensl/ adj. (technical 7 iff) 1 [only before
noun] used to describe the extent to which sth can stretch without breaking
ft A to; JlAto; trtftto: the tensile strength of rope totals ££: 2 that can
be drawn out or
stretched oJ ft to; fi ft to; nJMH to: tensile cable nj W M to ten sion Otw /'tenJn/ noun, verb
m
noun 1 [U, C, usually pi ] ~ (between A and B) a situation in which
people do not trust each other, or feel unfriendly towards each other, and
which may cause them to attack each other ^ftM^ ( DUft ) :
There
is mounting tension along the border. 0
If f „ o intemational/racial/political tensions
0
i«ftM^; wm\WtoKft^ifc;
«J&LfctoKft#«
2 [C, U] - (between A and B) a situation in which
the fact that there are different needs or interests causes difficulties 7lf; MfL: There is often a tension
between the aims of the company and the wishes of the employees.
3[U]a
feeling of anxiety and stress
that makes it impossible to relax ( 1f*t±to
) !§tft, MM: nervous tension ff 0 We laughed and that helped ease the tension.
f]^7, HMtefcftWflHtafnT#,, onoteatPRES- sure 4 [U] the feeling of fear and
excitement that is created by a writer or a film/movie director ( f^1^7 # vH ffl k to ) % ftH &: dramatic tension fy A >l> ik to ^ft*HI^ 0 As
the movie
progresses the tension builds. R® #fc«J&J1tto3t*, ^@7MMft0
5 [U] the state of being stretched tight; the extent to which sth is
stretched tight ft#; ftA; ftiSSttiS;- MM; muscular tension o Adjust the string tension of
your tennis racket to suit your style of playing. ii7ip«]i^ Jflft Wffc#,■ ft o — see also surface
TENSION
n verb [VN] (technical 7 i§) to make a
wire, sail, etc. tight and stretched ( W#
) &M, ®
ten-sor /'tensa(r); -sa:(r)/ noun (anatomy $?) a muscle that tightens or stretches part of the body
ftUl
tents ftil
dome tent HIMftjIr ridge tent ft 31
tent CH» /tent/ noun
a shelter made of a large sheet of canvas, nylon, etc. that is supported
by poles and ropes fixed to the ground, and is used especially for camping ft j§; ft
H: to put up/take down a
tent jg / 7 ft 31 0 to pitch (= put up) a
tent ft H o Food will be served in the hospitality tent {= for example at an
outdoor show). i#ft3Si$— see also A-frame tent, dome
TENT, FRAME TENT, OXYGEN TENT, PUP TENT, RIDGE TENT,
WALL TENT
ten-tade
/'tentakl/
noun 1 [C] a long thin
part of the body of some creatures, such as an octopus, used for feeling or holding things, for moving or
for getting food to ft ; to 7; MM: (figurative) Tentacles of fear closed around
her body. S^
to ir
ife 0 — picture
o page R29 2
tentacles [pi.] (usually disapproving) the influence that a
large place, organization or system has and that is hard to avoid ( A (ft
toifc: The tentacles of satellite
television are spreading even wider. iMfeMto^lfOlE. 0
ten ta tive /'tentativ/ adj. 1 (of an arrangement,
agreement, etc. Aft. ffoXX^) not definite or
certain because you may want to change it later 7 517 to; 7 it 7 (ft; 177 (ft: We made a tentative arrangement to meet on Friday. 7IH W7 Jli$2L iAlffio
0 tentative
conclusions fj] 7£ni& 2 not behaving or done with confidence 01 to; #tit7Sto; 7^®rto EEE1 hesitant:
a tentative
greeting
ft 7A (ft (ft \% 0 I’m taking the first tentative steps towards fitness, ft U '14 ff ^ Wi d # it #J.
► ten ta tive ly adv. ten ta-tive-ness noun [U] tent ed /'tentid/ adj. consisting of tents; like a tent & ft
S£Ljftfi9; ftjlftto: a tented village ftHJt ten ter hooks /'tentahoks; NAmE -tarh-/ noun [pi.] fRTl (be) on 'tenterhooks (NAmE also be on ,pins and needles) (to be) very anxious
or excited while you are waiting to find out sth or see what will happen 7 At 7 I’ve been on tenterhooks all week
waiting for the results. M7M$»£^aL7£, fmmifli From tenterhook, a hook which in the
past was used to keep material stretched on a drying frame during manufacture.
MS tenterhook ( ) ,
Jiil
7iC^7to^M*7^±to-^
7o tenth
/tenG/
ordinal
number, noun a ordinal number 1
oth % 7 There are examples of
how to use ordinal
numbers at the entry for fifth. fifth #r0
mnoun each of ten equal parts of sth -fjfZIT»T?1 see POSSESSION
'tent peg noun = peg n.(2)
tenu ous /‘tenjuas/ adj. 1 so weak or uncertain
that it hardly exists Utiiitft; $fc$j(ft; a tenuous hold
on life #^#^0 His links with the organization turned out to be, at best, tenuous.
^E^^7iaji7BP7^S7o
2 extremely thin and
easily broken ^Nffltft; If to; Jl&rto
►tenu-ous-ly
adv. ten-ure /*tenja(r)/
noun [U] 1 the period of time when sb holds an
important job, especially a political one; the act of holding an important job
( ft is It W ?o IR # to ) HM-, jf IR: his four-year tenure as President life to 0 7 ^ o She knew that tenure of high political
office was beyond her. g & IR
(%. c
2 the right to stay
permanently in your job, especially as a teacher at a university ( 3ttB77fWto )
% IR fv
, ffl H 7 : It’s still extremely difficult to
get tenure. 3 the legal
right
to live in a house or
use a piece of land ( to ) $
*pk, mm
ten-ured /’tenjad;
NAmE -jard/ adj. [usually before noun] 1 (of an official job
7IR) that you can keep permanently ££lfto; -^^^Wto: a tenured post ^-#IRfv 2 (of a
person, especially a teacher at a university 7
^771ft ij®) having the right to keep their job permanently km7 to; 7W^^IR7to: a tenured professor #
mk
tepee (also tee-pee) /’tiipi:/ noun a type of tall tent shaped like a cone, used by Native
Americans in the past ( MMi&$AIBN-$7to
) [M^ftm —see also
WIGWAM
tepid /‘tepid/ adj. 1 slightly
warm, sometimes in a way that is not pleasant 7$-7j&to; i$rZi.to; ilL#to HT71 lukewarm:
tepid tea ili777- O o. tepid bath 7 o note at cold 2 not enthusiastic 7
'If to ; 7 to lukewarm : The play was greeted with tepid
applause. 7«tof77
tequila /ta'kirla/ noun 1 [U] a strong alcoholic drink made in
M
( H M W 7 to 14 M ) 2 [C] a glass of tequila
te quila slammer noun = slammer(2)