stiffen

The defective hemoglobin sticks to itself, causing normally flexible cells to stiffen into sickle shapes—a process sometimes called sickling—that block blood flow, damage organs and trigger excruciating pain.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 9, 2026

“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

"He'd started to stiffen because he had been there for so long, dead, with no-one noticing. It's horrific to think someone's loved one died with no one near them."

From BBC ● Jun. 11, 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

His Free Brothers were brave and eager for the fight, he claimed, but without the Unsullied to stiffen them he feared his unblooded troops might not have the discipline to face battle-seasoned sellswords by themselves.

From "A Dance with Dragons" by George R. R. Martin

US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth responded to the deaths with a post on X that said: "Godspeed, heroes. Their sacrifice only stiffens our resolve."

From BBC ● Jul. 19, 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

More than 13% of Americans 75 and older have the condition, in which the aortic valve stiffens and narrows.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 25, 2026

Over time, inflammation can progress to fibrosis and scarring that stiffens the liver.

From Science Daily ● Mar. 7, 2026

In the distance, right at the entrance to the big top, August stops and stiffens.

From "Water for Elephants" by Sara Gruen

Refusing to form such a coalition, even if it meant giving up a sure route to the prime ministry, would have stiffened this view.

From Slate ● Nov. 5, 2026

Others argued the particles stiffened the surrounding material like glue.

From Science Daily ● May 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

Her roles in the 1950s diminished in plausibility, and Crawford’s acting stiffened into rigid self-presentation.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 21, 2025

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

IPF is a chronic, progressive lung disease characterized by irreversible scarring and stiffening of lung tissue.

From Barron's ● Mar. 30, 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

"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

Around them the sea was stiffening as it froze, and the men could hear the snow crackle as it fell onto the waves.

From "Shipwreck at the Bottom of the World" by Jennifer Armstrong