as in strengthening
to make more harsh, uncompromising, or severe
plans to further stiffen the already onerous requirements for admission to the elite military unit
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of stiffening
Yet that comes as experts say competition among convenience stores is stiffening.
—
Natalie Rice, CNBC, 10 Sep. 2025
But most recently it has been hit from several sides, most notably stiffening competition primarily from Amazon, off-pricers and membership clubs as well as Walmart and Target.
—David Moin, Footwear News, 3 Sep. 2025
Natalie Rice, CNBC, 10 Sep. 2025
But most recently it has been hit from several sides, most notably stiffening competition primarily from Amazon, off-pricers and membership clubs as well as Walmart and Target.
—David Moin, Footwear News, 3 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for stiffening
strengthening
Verb
-
Building and strengthening one-on-one relationships is the way to grow and defend yourself.—
Harriette Cole,
Mercury News,
13 Sep. 2025
-
Merrill even walked with two outs to bring the go-ahead run to the plate but Ryan O’Hearn struck out to end a loss that prevented the Padres from truly strengthening their postseason position.—
Jeff Sanders,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
13 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Stiffening.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/stiffening. Accessed 17 Sep. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share