straighten
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
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When he promises her that he’ll straighten out his life, he sounds as desperate as all the other bad men who’ve tried those same pleas on him.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 23, 2026
The researchers identified four characteristics that can help determine whether a tilted tropical cyclone is likely to straighten vertically.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 20, 2026
“If there are, we’ll have to straighten it out, but I don’t think there’s too many significant differences,” Trump said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 17, 2026
I rarely straighten my mop of thick, curly hair, and when I do, it’s not always a great experience.
From Salon ● Feb. 2, 2026
“Would you straighten the desk?” he asks me.
From "The Brightwood Code" by Monica Hesse
A microlens array first aligns and straightens the light from each laser.
From Science Daily ● Apr. 2, 2026
The Mercator map is arguably the best for this purpose, because it straightens out spiraling rhumb lines, and that’s why it rose to dominance.
From Slate ● Jan. 21, 2026
He straightens it out and enhances its faded colour with careful strokes of a pencil.
From BBC ● Nov. 29, 2025
Whatever you wear, I hope you share M&M’s and popcorn with someone who straightens your crown.
From Salon ● Aug. 14, 2024
Cecil straightens up and adjusts his checked waistcoat, tugging the hem with both hands.
From "Water for Elephants" by Sara Gruen
“It’ll be back down once we get things straightened out.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 15, 2026
When she straightened up, her face was flush with a wide-eyed glow: “Oh my God!”
From Los Angeles Times ● May 13, 2026
The four animals are expected to help return the West Glen River near Grantham to a more natural course after centuries of being straightened and deepened to drain farmland.
From BBC ● Feb. 26, 2026
A very kind woman working behind the desk straightened me out: I was being too literal.
From Slate ● Dec. 29, 2025
Hugo straightened a box of gum packs on the counter.
From Absolutely Almost by Lisa Graff
His grand goal was to reduce flooding, ease navigation and expand commercial shipping capacity by straightening the river’s course and shortening the distance between Basel and Bonn by 50 miles.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 21, 2026
"Expansion and straightening cause water to drain away into the North Sea and Baltic Sea even faster, rather than being retained in the surrounding area."
From Barron's ● Aug. 13, 2026
She’s known for straightening out the oil industry in Venezuela, making sure they could make money off it.
From Slate ● Jan. 5, 2026
Together, they launched Altadena Girls to gather donations including beauty and hair products — fragrances, makeup, pimple patches, straightening tools and diffusers — and new clothing.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 14, 2025
“Oh, maybe I should explain,” she said, straightening the oversized flower behind her ear.
From "Sir Fig Newton and the Science of Persistence" by Sonja Thomas
Vocabulary lists containing straighten
List 10
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"The Giving Tree"
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Spelling Practice 3, Unit 4
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