tighten up
phrasal 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
The Chargers tightened up and limited Dart to 10 rushing yards in the second half.
—
Daniel Popper, New York Times, 29 Sep. 2025
Lamar Jackson has been sharp; he's thrown for 722 yards and 9 touchdowns so far without an interception, but the offense will need to tighten up down the stretch.
—Ben Verbrugge, MSNBC Newsweek, 28 Sep. 2025
That muscle group then gets overworked and tightens up.
—Jenny McCoy, Outside, 28 Sep. 2025
For now, Kansas City tightening up close to the end zone is buying its offense some breathing room.
—Andrew Greif, NBC news, 22 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for tighten up
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Daniel Popper, New York Times, 29 Sep. 2025
Lamar Jackson has been sharp; he's thrown for 722 yards and 9 touchdowns so far without an interception, but the offense will need to tighten up down the stretch.
—Ben Verbrugge, MSNBC Newsweek, 28 Sep. 2025
That muscle group then gets overworked and tightens up.
—Jenny McCoy, Outside, 28 Sep. 2025
For now, Kansas City tightening up close to the end zone is buying its offense some breathing room.
—Andrew Greif, NBC news, 22 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for tighten up
Cite this Entry
“Tighten up.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tighten%20up. Accessed 1 Oct. 2025.
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