stiff

I. adjective Etymology: Middle English stif, from Old English stīf; akin to Middle Dutch stijf stiff, Latin stipare to press together, Greek steibein to tread on Date: before 12th century 1. a. not easily bent ; rigid <

a stiff collar

> b. lacking in suppleness or flexibility <

stiff muscles

> c. impeded in movement — used of a mechanism <

a truck's stiff suspension

> d. drunk 1a 2. a. firm, resolute b. stubborn, unyielding c. proud d. (1) marked by reserve or decorum (2) lacking in ease or grace ; stilted 3. hard fought ; pugnacious, sharp <

drove a stiff bargain

> <

stiff competition

> 4. a. (1) exerting great force <

a stiff wind

> (2) forceful, vigorous b. potent <

a stiff dose

> <

poured her a stiff drink

> 5. of a dense or glutinous consistency ; thick 6. a. harsh, severe <

a stiff penalty

> b. arduous, rugged <

stiff terrain

> 7. not easily heeled over by an external force (as the wind) <

a stiff ship

> 8. expensive, steep <

paid a stiff price

> • stiffish adjective • stiffly adverb • stiffness noun Synonyms: stiff, rigid, inflexible mean difficult to bend. stiff may apply to any degree of this condition <

stretching keeps your muscles from becoming stiff

>. rigid applies to something so stiff that it cannot be bent without breaking <

a rigid surfboard

>. inflexible stresses lack of suppleness or pliability <

ski boots with inflexible soles

>. II. adverb Date: 13th century 1. in a stiff manner ; stiffly 2. to an extreme degree ; severely <

scared stiff

> <

bored stiff

> 3. close enough to the hole for an easy putt in golf <

hit it stiff and tapped it in for an easy birdie

> III. noun Date: circa 1859 1. corpse 2. a. tramp, bum b. a member of the working class; especially a blue-collar worker c. person <

a lucky stiff

>; especially a stodgy or excessively decorous person 3. flop, failure IV. verb Date: 1950 transitive verb 1. a. to refuse to pay or tip <

stiffed the waiter

> b. cheat <

stiffed him in a business deal

> c. stick 7a <

stiffed us with the bar bill

> 2. snub 3 <

stiffed sportswriters after the game

> intransitive verb to fail commercially <

the movie stiffed at the box office

>