Main Entry: ¹tense

Pronunciation: \ˈten(t)s\

Function: adjective

Inflected Form(s): tens·er; tens·est

1 : stretched tight : made taut or rigid <the skeletal musculature involuntarily becomes tense—H. G. Armstrong>
2 : feeling or showing nervous tension <was tense and irritable>

—tense·ness noun