stiffen

English

Etymology

From Middle English stifnen, equivalent to stiff +‎ -en.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈstɪfən/

• Audio (Southern England):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɪfən

Verb

stiffen (third-person singular simple present stiffens, present participle stiffening, simple past and past participle stiffened)

1. (transitive) To make stiff.
2. (intransitive) To become stiff.
   • 2003, Yoko Ogawa, The Housekeeper and the Professor:

     Bewildered by the unexpected greeting, my son stiffened, but managed a polite answer.

Synonyms

• starken

Derived terms

• stiffen up

Related terms

• stiff

Translations

to make stiff

• Bulgarian: втвърдявам (bg) (vtvǎrdjavam)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 使僵硬

• Finnish: jäykistää, jähmettää (fi), kangistaa
• French: raidir (fr), endurcir (fr)
• German: aussteifen, versteifen (de), verstärken (de), ertüchtigen (de), aufdoppeln
• Ido: rigidigar (io)
• Irish: stalc
• Italian: irrigidire
• Maori: whakamakiki, whakawhena
• Norwegian: stivne
• Portuguese: endurecer (pt)
• Romanian: întări (ro)
• Spanish: atiesar (es), entiesar (es), endurecer (es)
• Volapük: stifükön (vo)

to become stiff

• Arabic: جَمَدَ (jamada)
• Bulgarian: втвърдявам се (vtvǎrdjavam se), вкочанясвам се (vkočanjasvam se)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 变硬 (zh)

• Czech: ztuhnout (cs) pf, ztvrdnout pf
• Danish: stivne
• Finnish: jäykistyä (fi), jähmettyä (fi), kangistua (fi)
• French: se raidir (fr), s’endurcir (fr)
• German: versteifen (de)
• Gothic: 𐌲𐌰𐍃𐍄𐌰𐌿𐍂𐌺𐌽𐌰𐌽 (gastaurknan)
• Icelandic: stífna
• Ingrian: kangeta
• Irish: stalc
• Latin: rigēscō
• Norwegian: stivne
• Portuguese: endurecer (pt)
• Romanian: întări (ro)
• Slovak: stvrdnúť pf, stuhnúť pf
• Spanish: atiesarse (es), entiesarse (es), endurecerse (es)
• Swedish: styvna (sv), stelna (sv), bli styv (sv), bli stel (sv)
• Volapük: stifikön (vo)

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Translations to be checked

• Interlingua: ^{(please verify)} rigidar (se)
• Spanish: ^{(please verify)} atiesarse (es), ^{(please verify)} endurecerse (es)

Anagrams

• infefts