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Recent Examples of tightened
Austin Sanders, Austin American Statesman, 1 Mar. 2026
Driving lanes tightened quickly with Wembanyama roaming the paint.
—C.j. Holmes, New York Daily News, 27 Feb. 2026
Vocational programs, which require expensive equipment, dedicated facilities, and instructors with real-world trade certifications rather than conventional teaching degrees, were easy targets when budgets tightened.
—Gerald Bradshaw, Chicago Tribune, 25 Feb. 2026
Beijing also tightened its restrictions on rare earths exports worldwide.
—Evelyn Cheng, CNBC, 25 Feb. 2026
In recent years, the Russian government has tightened its control over civilians’ digital lives.
—Sophie Spiegelberger, New Yorker, 24 Feb. 2026
Kansas City’s housing market has tightened again to start 2026.
—Allison Palmer
updated February 23, Kansas City Star, 23 Feb. 2026
The Samsonite Pralux Carry-on’s large top compartment features two compression straps, which can be tightened over the removable compression panel to maximize packing space.
—Sophie Dodd, Travel + Leisure, 22 Feb. 2026
As the job market has tightened, many Gen Z college graduates have struggled to find stable footing—raising new questions about whether a degree is still worth the time and debt burden.
—Preston Fore, Fortune, 22 Feb. 2026
Verb
How state laws tightened the squeeze Two recent state laws significantly reduced Austin’s budget flexibility.
—Austin Sanders, Austin American Statesman, 1 Mar. 2026
Driving lanes tightened quickly with Wembanyama roaming the paint.
—C.j. Holmes, New York Daily News, 27 Feb. 2026
Vocational programs, which require expensive equipment, dedicated facilities, and instructors with real-world trade certifications rather than conventional teaching degrees, were easy targets when budgets tightened.
—Gerald Bradshaw, Chicago Tribune, 25 Feb. 2026
Beijing also tightened its restrictions on rare earths exports worldwide.
—Evelyn Cheng, CNBC, 25 Feb. 2026
In recent years, the Russian government has tightened its control over civilians’ digital lives.
—Sophie Spiegelberger, New Yorker, 24 Feb. 2026
Kansas City’s housing market has tightened again to start 2026.
—Allison Palmer
updated February 23, Kansas City Star, 23 Feb. 2026
The Samsonite Pralux Carry-on’s large top compartment features two compression straps, which can be tightened over the removable compression panel to maximize packing space.
—Sophie Dodd, Travel + Leisure, 22 Feb. 2026
As the job market has tightened, many Gen Z college graduates have struggled to find stable footing—raising new questions about whether a degree is still worth the time and debt burden.
—Preston Fore, Fortune, 22 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for tightened
Adjective
-
For working class voters with inflexible work schedules, limited transportation and scarce childcare, adding a document requirement is not a neutral inconvenience.—
Kica Matos,
Hartford Courant,
1 Mar. 2026
-
The technique was inextricably bound to his worldview as a prober and philosopher uncommitted to absolute truth or inflexible morality; in Preminger’s world, there are always myriad perspectives that, if not equally valid, are equally considered.—
Jim Hemphill,
IndieWire,
27 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Studios in collaboration with Banijay’s DLO Producciones, tracks the rise of the founding leader of Los Miami, a gang which controlled Madrid’s insatiable ‘90s drug business, tensed by sudden explosive violence, and the drug-lord’s multiple near-death experiences.—
John Hopewell,
Variety,
18 Dec. 2025
-
The officer took her to the ground and then tried cuffing Tejeras, who tensed up so much, the officer’s body camera was knocked to the ground, according to the report.—
David Goodhue,
Miami Herald,
26 Nov. 2025
Adjective
-
Amodei, the Anthropic CEO, has repeatedly remarked that firmer commitments from the Defense Department to not use AI to surveil Americans are necessary because the law has not caught up to AI’s increasingly powerful capability to analyze or parse vast troves of data.—
Kevin Collier,
NBC news,
3 Mar. 2026
-
Some legislators feel that the ordinance could damage the legislature’s credibility if it is pushed through without firm legal backing from the county.—
Ilana Arougheti,
Kansas City Star,
3 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
The lead stretched to 12 early in the third quarter, but slowly and painfully for Parker, the hosts, with Archer attacking the glass, kept pecking away.—
Don Norcross,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
8 Mar. 2026
-
Meanwhile, working- and middle-class families are stretched thin.—
Tiffany Caban,
New York Daily News,
8 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
The breath of air, and the freedom of movement, only reinforce the moral asphyxiation taking place inside—and emphasize the unyielding authority sustaining the city’s public life.—
Richard Brody,
New Yorker,
19 Feb. 2026
-
On other occasions, a parting can be soured by big, unyielding personalities.—
Greg O'Keeffe,
New York Times,
1 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
Remove and use an electric mixer to whisk until the meringue holds stiff, glossy peaks, about 3-4 minutes.—
The Week UK,
TheWeek,
7 Mar. 2026
-
Wind or a slight breeze helps the fibers to stay moving, which helps to prevent the stiff feeling.—
Ashlyn Needham,
Southern Living,
7 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
Run is a taut thriller that feels like an elevated Lifetime movie in all the right ways.—
Kevin Jacobsen,
Entertainment Weekly,
21 Feb. 2026
-
The Phillies might not be better than the team that ended last season with a taut four-game series against the Los Angeles Dodgers.—
Matt Gelb,
New York Times,
11 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
In the South, gardening is less about rigid dates and more about reading the season.—
Jessica Safavimehr,
Southern Living,
3 Mar. 2026
-
That powder-keg moment quickly spread nationwide, reflecting widespread dissatisfaction with a regime that has systematically devastated the country while clinging to its rigid ideology.—
Lily Moayeri,
Rolling Stone,
3 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Tightened.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/tightened. Accessed 10 Mar. 2026.
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