How to Use tighten in a Sentence

tighten

verb
  • She tightened her hold on the handle.
  • The loop tightens with each pass.
    — Douglas Goodwin, The Conversation, 1 June 2026
  • We’re told to tighten our belts.
    — Jennah Pendleton, Sacbee.com, 11 Mar. 2026
  • If plans start to get messy, tighten them up.
    — Tarot.com, New York Daily News, 22 Apr. 2026
  • Write it down, tighten the plan, then act.
    — Tarot.com, Hartford Courant, 21 Apr. 2026
  • Even around the house, a video can show how to tighten a faucet.
    — Nirit Cohen, Forbes.com, 14 Sep. 2025
  • There’s work to do to tighten his gaps, but there’s a lot to like.
    — Scott Wheeler, New York Times, 8 Apr. 2026
  • Brace the blade with your scrap wood, then use a wrench to tighten it.
    — Brandee Gruener, Southern Living, 8 June 2026
  • From there, the Tigers tightened their grip.
    — Eddie Brown, San Diego Union-Tribune, 4 June 2026
  • Take a deep breath and tighten your boot buckles.
    — John Meyer, Denver Post, 26 Feb. 2026
  • Make sure to tighten it well to avoid leakage.
    — Hallie Milstein, Southern Living, 12 Oct. 2025
  • Make sure to tighten it well to avoid leakage.
    — Hallie Milstein, Southern Living, 17 Feb. 2026
  • His jaw tightened as beads of sweat gleamed on his forehead.
    — Christopher Cann, USA Today, 10 May 2026
  • Hand-tighten the bolt back on the mower.
    — Brandee Gruener, Southern Living, 8 June 2026
  • Per the outlet, her goal was to tighten the skin around her jaw.
    — Michael Nied, People.com, 10 July 2025
  • Then, tighten the plug back and turn off all the outside faucets.
    — oregonlive, 22 Feb. 2023
  • But the race for second place tightened overnight.
    — Stephen Hobbs, Sacbee.com, 3 June 2026
  • The viewer can feel their chest tighten.
    — Sarah Moreno, Miami Herald, 8 Apr. 2026
  • Leia grabbed a ratchet wrench and tightened some loose bolts on the ship.
    — Brady MacDonald, Oc Register, 29 Apr. 2026
  • When those rates are capped, lenders are forced to tighten their standards.
    — Julio Fuentes, The Orlando Sentinel, 7 Feb. 2026
  • His fingers tightened on my wrist.
    — Sam Lipsyte, New Yorker, 19 Oct. 2025
  • His face is now crimson; a vein in his neck tightens like a rope pulled taut.
    — Stephen Rodrick, Variety, 13 Sep. 2023
  • Spain has tightened its program.
    — Nick Lichtenberg, Fortune, 17 June 2026
  • Then the wheels to tighten the window for the downfield throw.
    — Tim Bielik, cleveland, 28 Nov. 2021
  • So far, the gap’s tightened but the Lakers are still in ninth.
    — Dan Woike, Los Angeles Times, 4 Apr. 2024
  • Lita tightens her robe and heads downstairs to answer the door.
    — Lizz Schumer, Peoplemag, 3 Aug. 2024
  • On top of that, a host are tightening rules further.
    — Nimi Princewill, CNN Money, 16 Mar. 2026
  • To help tighten and firm the skin, reach for this collagen face mask.
    — Tatjana Freund, ELLE, 29 July 2022
  • But got to tighten the coverage down for sure.
    — Jon MacHota, New York Times, 22 Sep. 2025
  • Plus, the straps can be tightened or loosened to your liking.
    — Emily Weaver, People.com, 5 Apr. 2025

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'tighten.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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