stiff

/stɪf/

/stɪf/

Other forms: stiffer; stiffest; stiffs

Stiff things don’t bend or move easily. Dead bodies and tree branches are often stiff, and your back might feel stiff if you sit for too long. But to stiff the wait staff is to skip the tip. Bad idea.

If a doorknob is stiff, it won't turn smoothly, and if the smile on your face is stiff, it’s frozen and unnatural looking. When a person is stiff, they are artificial and unrelaxed — unless they're "scared stiff" or "bored stiff." A regular guy is a working stiff. Another colloquial meaning of stiff is "to underpay, or to cheat.” Also, a stiff drink has a lot of alcohol. A dead body is sometimes called a stiff, but it’s rude.

Definitions of stiff

1. adjective

   incapable of or resistant to bending
   “a palace guardsman stiff as a poker”

   “stiff hair”

   “a stiff neck”

   synonyms: rigid

   inflexible

   resistant to being bent
2. adjective

   not moving or operating freely
   “a stiff hinge”

   synonyms:

   immobile

   not capable of movement or of being moved
3. adjective

   rigidly formal
   “the letter was stiff and formal”

   synonyms: buckram, starchy

   formal

   being in accord with established forms and conventions and requirements (as e.g. of formal dress)
4. adjective

   marked by firm determination or resolution; not shakable
   synonyms: firm, steadfast, steady, unbendable, unfaltering, unshakable, unwavering

   resolute

   firm in purpose or belief; characterized by firmness and determination
5. adverb

   in a stiff manner
   synonyms: stiffly
6. adjective

   powerful
   “a stiff current”

   “a stiff breeze”

   synonyms:

   strong

   having strength or power greater than average or expected
7. adjective

   having a strong physiological or chemical effect
   synonyms: potent, strong

   effective, effectual, efficacious

   producing or capable of producing an intended result or having a striking effect

   fertile

   capable of reproducing

   equipotent

   having equal strength or efficacy

   multipotent

   able to many things

   impactful, powerful

   having great power or force or potency or effect
8. noun

   the dead body of a human being
   synonyms: cadaver, clay, corpse, remains

   types:

   cremains

   the remains of a dead body after cremation

   type of:

   body, dead body

   a natural object consisting of a dead animal or person
9. noun

   an ordinary man
   “a lucky stiff”

   “a working stiff”

   type of:

   adult male, man

   an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
10. adverb

    extremely
    “bored stiff”

    “frightened stiff”
11. adjective

    very drunk
    synonyms: cockeyed

    drunk, inebriated, intoxicated

    stupefied or excited by a chemical substance (especially alcohol)