tighten up

verb

tightened up; tightening up; tightens up

: to become more strict or effective or to make (something) more strict or effective

Security around the building has tightened up recently.

They tightened up security around the building.

Examples of tighten up in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

After recent rule changes, the duration of most baseball games as tightened up, something that Drunk Uncle lamented. — Cynthia Littleton, Variety, 1 Nov. 2026

Georgia coach Kirby Smart said that Robinson’s knee tightened up on him at some point in the first half, potentially on his interception. — Connor Riley, AJC.com, 1 Nov. 2026

Still, Rabe could stand to tighten up Brooke’s unhinged righteousness. — Thomas Floyd, Washington Post, 23 Oct. 2026

The unit has tightened up in recent weeks, allowing 12, 20 and 8 points to Fort Worth Carter-Riverside, Benbrook and Western Hills, respectively. — Charles Baggarly, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 9 Oct. 2026

Rhymes for tighten up

• buttercup
• backup
• blowup
• breakup
• buildup
• checkup
• cleanup
• holdup
• hookup
• lineup
• lockup
• makeup