tense
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tense
Grammatical tense refers to the conjugation of a verb to reflect its place in time—that is, when the action occurred.
There are technically only two grammatical tenses in English: the past and the present. Verbs in their basic form inherently describe the present time, and they can be conjugated into a unique form that describes the past. We can then use auxiliary verbs and verb participles to create different aspects of the past and present tenses, which describe if an action is or was continuous, or if it began at an earlier point in the past.
However, verbs do not have a specific conjugated form to reflect the future, and, for this reason, English is considered not to have a true future tense.
Nevertheless, although English has no future tense in the strict sense, we commonly refer to several structures that are used for future meaning as belonging to the “future tense.” The most common of these structures begin with will or be going to.
tense
stretched tight; high-strung: She is overly tense.; a category of verbal inflection
Abused, Confused, & Misused Words by Mary Embree Copyright © 2007, 2013 by Mary Embree
tense 1
(tĕns)adj. tens·er, tens·est
2.
a. In a state of nervous tension or mental strain: was very tense before the exam.
b. Causing or characterized by nervous tension or mental strain: a tense standoff between border patrols.
3. Linguistics Enunciated with taut muscles, as the sound (ē) in keen.
tr. & intr.v. tensed, tens·ing, tens·es
To make or become tense.
tense′ly adv.
tense′ness n.
tense 2
(tĕns)n. Grammar
1. A property of verbs in which the time of the action or state, as well as its continuance or completion, is indicated or expressed.
2. A category or set of verb forms that indicate or express the time, such as past, present, or future, of the action or state.
[Middle English tens, from Old French, time, from Latin tempus.]
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
tense
(tɛns)adj
1. stretched or stressed tightly; taut or rigid
2. under mental or emotional strain
3. producing mental or emotional strain: a tense day.
4. (Phonetics & Phonology) (of a speech sound) pronounced with considerable muscular effort and having relatively precise accuracy of articulation and considerable duration: in English the vowel (iː) in 'beam' is tense. Compare lax4
vb
(often foll by up) to make or become tense
[C17: from Latin tensus taut, from tendere to stretch]
ˈtensely adv
ˈtenseness n
tense
(tɛns)n
(Grammar) grammar a category of the verb or verbal inflections, such as present, past, and future, that expresses the temporal relations between what is reported in a sentence and the time of its utterance
[C14: from Old French tens time, from Latin tempus]
ˈtenseless adj
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014
tense1
(tɛns)adj. tens•er, tens•est, adj.
1. stretched tight, as a cord, fiber, etc.; drawn taut; rigid.
2. in a state of mental or nervous strain; high-strung: a tense person.
3. characterized by a strain upon the nerves or feelings: a tense moment.
4. (of a speech sound) pronounced with the muscles of the speech organs relatively tense, as the vowel (ē) in seat. Compare lax (def. 7).
v.t., v.i. 5. to make or become tense.
[1660–70; < Latin tēnsus, past participle of tendere to stretch; compare tend1]
tense′ly, adv.
tense′ness, n.
tense2
(tɛns)n.
1. a category of verbs or verbal inflection serving chiefly to specify the time of the action or state expressed by the verb.
2. a set of such categories or constructions in a particular language.
3. the time, as past, present, or future, expressed by such a category.
[1275–1325; Middle English tens < Middle French < Latin tempus time, tense]
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.
tense
Past participle: tensed
Gerund: tensing
| Imperative |
|---|
| tense |
| tense |
Collins English Verb Tables © HarperCollins Publishers 2011
tense
The form of a verb that indicates the time of an action, such as present, past, or future.
Dictionary of Unfamiliar Words by Diagram Group Copyright © 2008 by Diagram Visual Information Limited
ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:
Switch to new thesaurus
| Noun | 1. | tense - a grammatical category of verbs used to express distinctions of time grammatical category, syntactic category - (grammar) a category of words having the same grammatical properties present tense, present - a verb tense that expresses actions or states at the time of speaking aorist - a verb tense in some languages (classical Greek and Sanskrit) expressing action (especially past action) without indicating its completion or continuation past tense, past - a verb tense that expresses actions or states in the past future tense, future - a verb tense that expresses actions or states in the future continuous tense, imperfect, imperfect tense, progressive, progressive tense - a tense of verbs used in describing action that is on-going perfect, perfect tense, perfective, perfective tense - a tense of verbs used in describing action that has been completed (sometimes regarded as perfective aspect) |
| Verb | 1. | tense - become stretched or tense or taut; "the bodybuilder's neck muscles tensed;" "the rope strained when the weight was attached" tighten - become tight or tighter; "The rope tightened" |
| 2. | tense - increase the tension on; "alternately relax and tense your calf muscle"; "tense the rope manually before tensing the spring" | |
| 3. | tense - become tense, nervous, or uneasy; "He tensed up when he saw his opponent enter the room" change state, turn - undergo a transformation or a change of position or action; "We turned from Socialism to Capitalism"; "The people turned against the President when he stole the election" | |
| 4. | tense - cause to be tense and uneasy or nervous or anxious; "he got a phone call from his lawyer that tensed him up" affect - act physically on; have an effect upon; "the medicine affects my heart rate" | |
| Adj. | 1. | tense - in or of a state of physical or nervous tension agitated - troubled emotionally and usually deeply; "agitated parents" uneasy - lacking a sense of security or affording no ease or reassurance; "farmers were uneasy until rain finally came"; "uneasy about his health"; "gave an uneasy laugh"; "uneasy lies the head that wears the crown"; "an uneasy coalition government"; "an uneasy calm"; "an uneasy silence fell on the group" relaxed - without strain or anxiety; "gave the impression of being quite relaxed"; "a relaxed and informal discussion" |
| 2. | tense - pronounced with relatively tense tongue muscles (e.g., the vowel sound in `beat') phonetics - the branch of acoustics concerned with speech processes including its production and perception and acoustic analysis lax - pronounced with muscles of the tongue and jaw relatively relaxed (e.g., the vowel sound in `bet') | |
| 3. | tense - taut or rigid; stretched tight; "tense piano strings" tight - closely constrained or constricted or constricting; "tight skirts"; "he hated tight starched collars"; "fingers closed in a tight fist"; "a tight feeling in his chest" lax - lacking in strength or firmness or resilience; "a lax rope"; "a limp handshake" |
Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2012 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.
tense
adjective
1. strained, uneasy, stressful, fraught, charged, difficult, worrying, exciting, uncomfortable, knife-edge, nail-biting, nerve-racking the tense atmosphere of the talks
2. nervous, wound up (informal), edgy, strained, wired (slang), anxious, under pressure, restless, apprehensive, jittery (informal), uptight (informal), on edge, jumpy, twitchy (informal), overwrought, strung up (informal), on tenterhooks, fidgety, keyed up, antsy (informal), wrought up He had been very tense, but he finally relaxed.
nervous collected, calm, serene, easy-going, unconcerned, cool-headed, unruffled, self-possessed, unworried
nervous collected, calm, serene, easy-going, unconcerned, cool-headed, unruffled, self-possessed, unworried
verb
Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002
tense
adjectiveverb
The American Heritage® Roget's Thesaurus. Copyright © 2013, 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Translations
napjatýnapnoutčasnapnutý
tidanspændtnervøsspændespændt
aikamuotokireähermostunutjännitettyjännittää
napetvrijeme
órólegurspennaspennturstrekkturtíð
時制緊張した
긴장한시제
laiksnervozsnospriegotssaspīlētssasprindzināt
napnutý
glagolski časnapet
tempusspänd
เคร่งเครียดกาล
căng thẳngthời của động từ
tense
1 [tens] N (Ling) → tiempo min the present tense → en presente
tense
2 [tens]A. ADJ (tenser (compar) (tensest (superl)))
1. (= nervous) [person, expression] → tenso
her voice was tense → se le notaba la tensión en la voz
to feel tense → sentirse tenso
to get or grow tense → ponerse tenso
her voice was tense → se le notaba la tensión en la voz
to feel tense → sentirse tenso
to get or grow tense → ponerse tenso
2. (= stiff) [body, muscles, neck] → tenso, en tensión
my shoulders are tense → tengo los hombros tensos or en tensión
my shoulders are tense → tengo los hombros tensos or en tensión
C. VT (also tense up) → tensar, poner tenso
she tensed her muscles → tensó or puso tensos los músculos
she tensed her muscles → tensó or puso tensos los músculos
tense up
A. VI + ADV
see tense 2 B
see tense 2 B
B. VT + ADV
see tense 2 C
see tense 2 C
Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005
tense
[ˈtɛns] n (LINGUISTICS) [verb] → temps m
the present tense → le présent
the future tense → le futur
the past tense → le passé
the present tense → le présent
the future tense → le futur
the past tense → le passé
vt [+ muscles] → tendre, contracter
vi (also tense up) [muscles] → se contracter, se tendre; [person] → se crisper
Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005
tense
1n (Gram) → Zeit f, → Tempus nt; present tense → Gegenwart f; past tense → Vergangenheit f; future tense → Zukunft f
tense
2adj (+er) rope → gespannt, straff; muscles → (an)gespannt; neck → verspannt; person, expression, bearing (through stress, worry etc) → angespannt; (through nervousness, fear etc) → verkrampft; voice → nervös; silence, atmosphere → gespannt; situation → (an)gespannt; time → gespannt, spannungsgeladen; negotiations → spannungsgeladen; relations → angespannt; (= thrilling) scene → spannungsgeladen; tense headache → Spannungskopfschmerz m; to grow or become or get tense (person) → nervös werden; to make somebody tense → jdn in Anspannung versetzen; I’ve been feeling rather tense all day → ich bin schon den ganzen Tag so nervös; in a voice tense with emotion → mit erregter Stimme; things are getting rather tense → die Lage wird gespannter
Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007
tense
1 [tɛns] n (Gram) → tempoin the present tense → al presente
tense
2 [tɛns]2. vt (tighten, muscles) → tendere
Collins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995
tense1
(tens) noun a form of a verb that shows the time of its action in relation to the time of speaking. a verb in the past/future/present tense.
tense2
(tens) adjective1. strained; nervous. The crowd was tense with excitement; a tense situation.
2. tight; tightly stretched.
verb to make or become tense. He tensed his muscles.
ˈtensely adverbˈtenseness noun
ˈtension (-ʃən) noun
1. the state of being stretched, or the degree to which something is stretched. the tension of the rope.
2. mental strain; anxiety. She is suffering from nervous tension; the tensions of modern life.
Kernerman English Multilingual Dictionary © 2006-2013 K Dictionaries Ltd.
tense
→ صِيْغَة, مُتَوَتِّر čas, napjatý anspændt, tid angespannt, Tempus τεντωμένος, χρόνος ρήματος tenso, tiempo verbal aikamuoto, kireä temps, tendu napet, vrijeme tempo, teso 時制, 緊張した 긴장한, 시제 gespannen, tijdsvorm anspent, verbtid czas, napięty tempo verbal, tenso время, натянутый spänd, tempus เคร่งเครียด, กาล gergin, zaman căng thẳng, thời của động từ 时态, 紧张的Multilingual Translator © HarperCollins Publishers 2009
tense
a. tenso-a, rígido-a, tirante, en estado de tensión.
English-Spanish Medical Dictionary © Farlex 2012
tense
adj tenso; vt (one's muscles) tensar (los músculos); vi to — up ponerse tenso; Try not to tense up..Trate de no ponerse tenso.English-Spanish/Spanish-English Medical Dictionary Copyright © 2006 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.