stiffen

“People get scared of the sway, the wobble. If you’ve had a fall before, you get a fear of falling again and you stiffen up, you become protective,” Swanson says.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 18, 2026

These are, Mr. Freymann writes, “tempting targets,” but seizing them could stiffen the resolve of Taiwan and its Western friends.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 14, 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

This involves the buildup of dense, fibrous tissue around the tumor, made up of cells and proteins that stiffen and inflame the area.

From Science Daily ● Jan. 30, 2026

I stiffen, afraid for a moment that she will see me, but she looks only at Marcus.

From "Insurgent" by Veronica Roth

Once the pH returns to normal, the tissue stiffens again and locks into its new form.

From Science Daily ● May 28, 2026

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

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

As Martin, Charles stiffens himself and keeps his facial expressions generally between neutral and annoyed, though he’s softer than Clunes, less a prisoner of his own body, less abrasive, less otherworldly.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 4, 2026

The beater forms billions of microscopic air pockets and stiffens the egg proteins.

From "The Omnivore's Dilemma" by Michael Pollan

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

“But the cat stiffened and I stiffened whenever anybody moved, aware of all the possible lives being lived around us.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 13, 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

Johnson’s move appears to have stiffened investors’ spines.

From Barron's ● Feb. 11, 2026

Olanna poured some palm oil into the cooled mixture and stirred and stirred until her arms stiffened from fatigue.

From "Half of a Yellow Sun" by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

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

Speaking to the BBC, he said with a "stiffening resolve" politicians could "take back control" of the levers of democracy.

From BBC ● Jan. 2, 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

For long hours each morning and evening, he lay on his small bed, swinging his arms and legs, arching his back, and stretching to keep his body from stiffening.

From "Touching Spirit Bear" by Ben Mikaelsen