stiffen

This summer, Slegers has strengthened her hand with seven new players, including full-back Ona Batlle, Caldentey's compatriot, and England dynamo Georgia Stanway to stiffen midfield.

From BBC ● Aug. 7, 2026

Depending on the situation, the material can bend, buckle, or stiffen in different ways, all without electronics, sensors, or active control systems.

From Science Daily ● Jun. 11, 2026

If Powell stays, that arithmetic becomes even harder, and it could stiffen the resolve of other governors whose terms run beyond Powell’s, said Wilcox.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 27, 2026

She has also vowed to stiffen prison sentences and to impose a state of emergency in areas worst hit by crime.

From Barron's ● Feb. 1, 2026

I felt Twig stiffen for a few moments, trying to figure out what to say, and I worried I’d said too much truth—that I’d scared her away.

From "The Science of Breakable Things" by Tae Keller

The biggest reason is that our maximum heart rate slows with age, and the heart muscle stiffens, reducing its pumping effectiveness.

From Barron's ● May 23, 2026

This arrangement stiffens the chain of bones and allows it to transmit very high-pitched sounds more efficiently, a characteristic often seen in animals such as echolocating bats that can detect ultrasound.

From Science Daily ● Mar. 12, 2026

Last year, Alibaba announced a plan to fold food-delivery and online-travel services into its e-commerce unit as competition stiffens in the Chinese market.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 29, 2026

Here, there’s actually a very good doom metal electronic score by John Murphy and David Fleming, but the movie stiffens up whenever it needs to get real.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 8, 2025

His ears flap up in alarm, he stiffens, looks around him in haste, and jumps.

From "Grendel" by John Gardner

The Lions’ defense, which had allowed Bishop Amat to score on four of its five first-half possessions, then stiffened, forcing the Lancers to punt.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 19, 2026

When the heart must work harder because of exercise, heat, stress or another cause, stiffened blood vessels may be less able to accommodate the increased blood flow.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 1, 2026

And sure enough, as UConn’s shots started falling and its defense stiffened against Boozer’s attacks, the deficit narrowed.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 30, 2026

They reckon it may have stiffened the resolve of the German public and discouraged rebels within the dying Nazi regime.

From MarketWatch ● Mar. 12, 2026

By that time my legs had stiffened so I could hardly walk.

From "Bad Boy" by Walter Dean Myers

Softening rather than stiffening when moving through space requires embracing your body’s natural sway and tiny micro-movements, like an ankle wobbling or knee jiggling.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 18, 2026

It’s hard to imagine a greater accomplishment than to achieve peace while stiffening the sinews of deterrence.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 1, 2026

No wonder OpenAI’s Sam Altman issued a “code red” alert to employees urging them to step up the pace of chatbot development in the face of stiffening competition from the likes of Google’s Gemini.

From Barron's ● Dec. 3, 2025

"They keep me fit and keep me moving, stop me stiffening up - I'm very determined, I won't give up," she says.

From BBC ● Oct. 21, 2025

Swimming gave him the chance to move and exercise his body, to uncramp it from the stiffening stillness of sitting with a chessboard or a book.

From "Endgame" by Frank Brady