Webster's English Dictionary

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stiff

1. stiff \'stif\ aj [ME stif, fr. OE sti-f; akin to MD stijf stiff, L 
   stipa]re to press together, Gk steibein to tread on 1a: not easily bent : 
   RIGID  1b: lacking in suppleness {~ muscles}  1c: impeded in movement - 
   used of a mechanism  1d: DRUNK  2a: FIRM, RESOLUTE  2b: STUBBORN, 
   UNYIELDING  2c: PROUD  2d1: marked by reserve or decorum : FORMAL  2d2: 
   lacking in ease or grace : STILTED  3: hard fought : PUGNACIOUS, SHARP  
   4a1: exerting great force : STRONG {~ wind}  4a2: FORCEFUL, VIGOROUS  4b: 
   POTENT {a ~ dose}  5: of a dense or glutinous consistency : THICK  6a: 
   HARSH, SEVERE {a ~ penalty}  6b: ARDUOUS, RUGGED {~ terrain}  7: not easily 
   heeled over by an external force (as the wind) {a ~  ship} 8: EXPENSIVE, 
   STEEP {paid a ~ duty}  mean impossible to bend. STIFF may apply to any 
   degree of this condition; RIGID applies to somthing so stiff that it cannot 
   be bent without breaking; INFLEXIBLE stresses lack of suppleness or 
   pliability; TENSE suggests a straining or stretching to a point where 
   elasticity is lost; STARK implies a stiffness associated with loss of life 
   or warmth - stiff.ly av SYN syn STIFF, RIGID, INFLEXIBLE, TENSE, STARK 
2. stiff av 1: STIFFLY  2: to an extreme degree : INTENSELY {bored ~} 
3. stiff n 1: CORPSE  2a: BUM, TRAMP  2b: LABORER, HAND