How to Use stiffen in a Sentence

stiffen

verb

• The dogs stiffened in alarm.
• The law would stiffen penalties for tax evasion.
• She stiffened when he grabbed her shoulder.
• When a brave man takes a stand, the spines of others are stiffened.
  — Meghan Overdeep, Southern Living, 21 Feb. 2018
• The dough will feel dense and will stiffen into a ball.
  — Becky Krystal, Washington Post, 30 June 2022
• Look for the Colts to stiffen up for much of this game and disallow Rodgers to run up the score.
  — Jeremy Cluff, The Arizona Republic, 17 Nov. 2020
• The hour before midnight and the deadline, the grass and ground stiffened with frost.
  — Nic Robertson, CNN, 9 Oct. 2019
• Once Bud stepped in the ring, his face went cold and his cheekbones stiffened.
  — Tyler R. Tynes, Los Angeles Times, 23 July 2023
• But as the years progress, his joints will stiffen and his muzzle will gray.
  — Emily Anthes, New York Times, 28 Nov. 2023
• When a brave man takes a stand, the spines of others are often stiffened.
  — Mark Price, Lavendrick Smith and Jane Wester, charlotteobserver, 21 Feb. 2018
• When those air sacs become clogged, the lungs stiffen up.
  — oregonlive, 7 Apr. 2020
• The Senate panel amended the bill to keep the age at 14 but stiffen the penalty.
  — Gregory S. Schneider, Washington Post, 24 Feb. 2020
• The only way to counter normative drift is to stiffen the guardrails.
  — David Montgomery, Washington Post, 10 Nov. 2020
• Her foot stiffens first and then her entire body locks in place.
  — Lovia Gyarkye, The Hollywood Reporter, 18 June 2024
• His tiny arms and legs would stiffen for a few seconds as many as 30 times per hour.
  — Sarah Elizabeth Richards, chicagotribune.com, 11 June 2018
• The surprise is that the glare of that spotlight only stiffens Gun’s spine.
  — Ty Burr, BostonGlobe.com, 4 Sep. 2019
• In the moonlight, the boy stiffened and looked first at the river and then at Eunhae, who had brought her knees up to her chest.
  — Paul Yoon, The New Yorker, 26 June 2023
• This is when a frog stiffens its outstretched arms and legs to appear dead.
  — Laura Baisas, Popular Science, 12 Oct. 2023
• The corset of the 1880s was an armpit-to-hip garment stiffened with whalebone stays, which helped the hips support heavy skirts that hung from the waist.
  — Aaron Gilbreath, Longreads, 6 July 2018
• Missouri would rush for 314 yards, but the Rams defense stiffened in the second half.
  — Kirk Kenney, sandiegouniontribune.com, 8 Dec. 2017
• Perhaps your jaw stiffens, or your heart rate speeds up.
  — Alisa Wolfson, Redbook, 29 Jan. 2018
• This system works like a vacuum that sucks air out from the coffee grounds to stiffen and loosen the foot.
  — Courtney Linder, Popular Mechanics, 3 June 2020
• Alabama defense, to its credit, stiffened with the ball first-and-goal at the 10.
  — Erick Smith, USA TODAY, 8 Jan. 2018
• But that could stiffen the resolve of others to outlast — if not combat — the vandals at the gates.
  — Ed Kilgore, Daily Intelligencer, 5 Feb. 2018
• The Falcons must stiffen up against the run, having allowed an average of 189.3 yards on the ground in the past three games.
  — Mark Heim | [e-mail], al, 4 Dec. 2022
• The deal doesn’t include a ratchet mechanism that would force the U.K. to stiffen its rule in lockstep with the EU.
  — Fortune, 25 Dec. 2020
• The Vikings’ defense stiffened there, stopping four straight running plays and forcing a turnover on downs at the 2.
  — Rick Hoff, San Diego Union-Tribune, 19 Nov. 2023
• Down a defender, the Havre de Grace defense stiffened and Cypher (17 saves) stayed strong.
  — Randy McRoberts, The Aegis, 18 Apr. 2018
• Her natural hair had been dyed with henna and juniper, while the long wig had been treated with quartz, magnetite, and albite crystals to stiffen the braids and blacken the color.
  — Jennifer Ouellette, Ars Technica, 1 Aug. 2024
• Twelve state legislatures passed new laws stiffening in-person voter ID rules.
  — Erin Mansfield, USA TODAY, 28 July 2024

Last Updated: 13 Nov 2024