tense : Dictionary / Wörterbuch (BEOLINGUS, TU Chemnitz)

English Dictionary: tense	by the DICT Development Group
5 results for tense
From WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006) [wn]:
tense adj in or of a state of physical or nervous tension [ant: relaxed] pronounced with relatively tense tongue muscles (e.g., the vowel sound in `beat') Antonym(s): lax taut or rigid; stretched tight; "tense piano strings" Antonym(s): lax n a grammatical category of verbs used to express distinctions of time v become stretched or tense or taut; "the bodybuilder's neck muscles tensed;" "the rope strained when the weight was attached" Synonym(s): strain, tense increase the tension on; "alternately relax and tense your calf muscle"; "tense the rope manually before tensing the spring" become tense, nervous, or uneasy; "He tensed up when he saw his opponent enter the room" Synonym(s): tense, tense up Antonym(s): decompress, loosen up, relax, slow down, unbend, unwind cause to be tense and uneasy or nervous or anxious; "he got a phone call from his lawyer that tensed him up" Synonym(s): tense, strain, tense up Antonym(s): loosen up, make relaxed, relax, unlax, unstrain, unwind
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) [web1913]:
Tense \Tense\, n. [OF. tens, properly, time, F. temps time, tense. See {Temporal} of time, and cf. {Thing}.] (Gram.) One of the forms which a verb takes by inflection or by adding auxiliary words, so as to indicate the time of the action or event signified; the modification which verbs undergo for the indication of time. Note: The primary simple tenses are three: those which express time past, present, and future; but these admit of modifications, which differ in different languages.
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) [web1913]:
Tense \Tense\, a. [L. tensus, p. p. of tendere to stretch. See {Tend} to move, and cf. {Toise}.] Stretched tightly; strained to stiffness; rigid; not lax; as, a tense fiber. The temples were sunk, her forehead was tense, and a fatal paleness was upon her. --Goldsmith. -- {Tense"ly}, adv. -- {Tense"ness}, n.
From Jargon File (4.2.0, 31 JAN 2000) [jargon]:
tense adj. Of programs, very clever and efficient. A tense piece of code often got that way because it was highly {bum}med, but sometimes it was just based on a great idea. A comment in a clever routine by Mike Kazar, once a grad-student hacker at CMU: "This routine is so tense it will bring tears to your eyes." A tense programmer is one who produces tense code.
From The Free On-line Dictionary of Computing (15Feb98) [foldoc]:
tense Of programs, very clever and efficient. A tense piece of code often got that way because it was highly {bum}med, but sometimes it was just based on a great idea. A comment in a clever routine by Mike Kazar, once a grad-student hacker at CMU: "This routine is so tense it will bring tears to your eyes." A tense programmer is one who produces tense code. [{Jargon File}]