Definition of "tight"

tight

/taɪt/

adjective
comparative tighter, superlative tightest
1. Firmly held together; compact; not loose or open.
  1. Unyielding or firm.
  2. Under high tension; taut.
    Quotations
    The face which emerged was not reassuring. It was blunt and grey, the nose springing thick and flat from high on the frontal bone of the forehead, whilst his eyes were narrow slits of dark in a tight bandage of tissue. […] .
    1963, Margery Allingham, chapter 17, in The China Governess‎
    The only negative from a comfortable first-half was the sight of Aston Villa’s Nathan Delfouneso being withdrawn with a tight hamstring after only 11 minutes.
    2011 November 10, Jeremy Wilson, “England Under 21 5 Iceland Under 21 0: match report”, in Telegraph
  3. (colloquial) Scarce, hard to come by.
  4. (colloquial, figurative) Intimately friendly.
    Quotations
    The drawbacks of being in a too-tight couple (there's no room to blow your nose)
    1985 April 20, Julie Ogletree, “Festival: Variety and Limits”, in Gay Community News, page 8
  5. (slang, figurative, usually derogatory) Miserly or frugal.
    Quotations
    You say he's a Jew, does it mean that he's tight?
    1995, Jewel (lyrics and music), “Who Will Save Your Soul”
2. (of a space, design or arrangement) Narrow, such that it is difficult for something or someone to pass through it.
  Quotations
  England squeezed high and dominated the ball, penning Iceland back but the hosts kept the lines tight and it became clear that England would have to work for their openings.
  2020 September 5, David Hytner, “Raheem Sterling keeps his cool to see off Iceland amid blaze of late drama”, in The Guardian‎
  1. Fitting close, or too close, to the body.
  2. Of a turn, sharp, so that the timeframe for making it is narrow and following it is difficult.
  3. Lacking holes; difficult to penetrate; waterproof.
    Quotations
    He reported the hull was tight and secure and did not leak a drop.
    1965, MotorBoating, page 145
    Security is tight inside and outside the building, guarded by a bewildering collection of soldiers, policemen and gendarmes. Relatives watch as prisoners in handcuffs and leg irons shuffle past.
    2014 November 27, Ian Black, “Courts kept busy as Jordan works to crush support for Isis”, in The Guardian
3. Well-rehearsed and accurate in execution.
  1. (sports) Not conceding many goals.
    Quotations
    The odd thing was that Sunderland made the better start and showed early signs that they might pose serious problems to the Premier League’s tightest defence.
    2014 October 18, Paul Doyle, “Southampton hammer eight past hapless Sunderland in barmy encounter”, in The Guardian
4. (slang) Intoxicated; drunk or acting like being drunk.
  Quotations
  And every single night when me da’ would come home tight he’d invite the neighbours out with this chorus.
  c. 1930, Dominic Behan (lyrics and music), “Come Out Ye Black and Tans”‎performed by The Wolfe Tones
  I'm going to celebrate my divorce! And then I'm going to get tight.
  1940, Effie Butler, Misbehaving Husbands
  And then he insisted on champagne for dinner and by the time we got to our little cinema we were both rather tight.
  1980 , Ian Fleming, chapter 3, in The Spy Who Loved Me, page 38
  Johnny walked into the Castle Bar, looking to get tight.
  2001, Gaelic Storm, Johnny Tarr (on the album Tree)
5. (slang) Extraordinarily great or special.
6. (slang, British (regional)) Mean; unfair; unkind.
  Quotations
  Reilly: Ey, Miss, hang on, hang on... can we come with y', Miss? Can we?Digga: Go on, Miss, don't be tight, let's come.
  1977, Willy Russell, Our Day Out, act 1, scene 1
  "Ah leave him, ay!" goes one of the girls. "Don't be tight." I turns to her. "Don't you think it's tight terrorising old ladies? Ay?"
  2001, Kevin Sampson, Outlaws, page 244
  "That's right ... so even when life's a grind, the Thais keep smiling. They think the farang are a miserable lot who have to get drunk to enjoy themselves.""Dutch, that's tight mate, I mean what's wrong with getting pissed. When you're not working, you gotta have a good time," said Darren.
  2011, Andrew Hicks, Thai Girl: A story of the one who said 'no', unnumbered page
7. Limited or restricted. (of time)
  Quotations
  It is kept super-clean by helpful staff who still find the time to help customers with tight connections.
  2022 January 12, Paul Bigland, “Fab Four: the nation's finest stations: Eastbourne”, in RAIL, number 948, page 26
8. (obsolete) Not ragged; whole; neat; tidy.
  Quotations
  clad very plain, but clean and tight
  1685 November 5 (Gregorian calendar), John Evelyn, “”, in William Bray, editor, Memoirs, Illustrative of the Life and Writings of John Evelyn, […], 2nd edition, volume I, London: Henry Colburn, […]; and sold by John and Arthur Arch, […], published 1819
  I'll spin and card, and keep our children tight.
  1714, John Gay, The What D'ye Call It
  Richard: But here she comes! [...] (Enter Rose — he is much struck by her.) By the Port Admiral, but she's a tight little craft!
  1887, W. S. Gilbert, Ruddigore
  “A tight little craft,” was Austin’s invariable comment on the matron; and she looked it, always trim and trig and smooth of surface like a converted yacht cleared for action. ¶ Near her wandered her husband […] from time to time squinting sideways, as usual, in the ever-renewed expectation that he might catch a glimpse of his stiff, retroussé moustache.
  1907 August, Robert W[illiam] Chambers, chapter IX, in The Younger Set, New York, N.Y.: D. Appleton & Company
9. (obsolete) Handy; adroit; brisk.
10. (poker) Of a player, who plays very few hands.
11. (poker) Using a strategy which involves playing very few hands.
12. (informal, of persons) Intimate, close, close-knit.
13. (US, slang, motor racing) A car with understeer, primarily used to describe NASCAR stock cars.
14. (United States (regional), slang) Angry or irritated.
15. (slang, vulgar, of either a woman's anus or her vagina) still intact due to her still being a virgin.
  Quotations
  "I was trying to be like a lady, but y'all be getting me tight!"
  2016, Cardi B, Washpoppin
adverb
comparative tighter, superlative tightest
1. Firmly, so as not to come loose easily.
  Quotations
  'I had my eyes tight shut.'
  1934, Agatha Christie, chapter 4, in Murder on the Orient Express, London: HarperCollins, published 2017, page 100
2. Soundly.
verb
third-person singular simple present tights, present participle tighting, simple past and past participle tighted
1. (obsolete) To tighten.

Definition of "tight"

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