tautness C2+ Topic:Law & Government US /ˈtɔtnəs/ UK /ˈtɔːtnəs/ See IPA manual Meanings 1 noun the state of being stretched tight or tense The tautness of the cables kept the bridge perfectly rigid. Thesaurus Synonyms 1 noun · the state of being... tightnesstensiontensenessstiffnessrigidity ↔ Opposites slacknessloosenesslaxity Word family Related forms tauttauten Etymology AI details From taut + -ness. Taut is from Middle English tought, taught ('tight, distended'), of uncertain origin. tought Middle English View etymology graph -> Topics Law & Government Word Formation & Derivatives External links Cambridge Dictionary Wiktionary Google Images # tautness **Type:** Word **Level:** C2+ **Part of speech:** noun **IPA (US):** /ˈtɔtnəs/ **IPA (UK):** /ˈtɔːtnəs/ ## Meanings 1. the state of being stretched tight or tense ## Examples - The tautness of the cables kept the bridge perfectly rigid. ## Synonyms - tightness - tension - tenseness - stiffness - rigidity ## Antonyms - slackness - looseness - laxity ## Related Forms - taut - tauten ## Roots and Affixes - Root: tought ## Etymology From taut + -ness. Taut is from Middle English tought, taught ('tight, distended'), of uncertain origin. ## AI Etymology Tautness is from taut + -ness. Taut is from Middle English tought, taught ('tight, distended'), of uncertain origin. Important recorded forms include tought (Middle English). Morphologically, the native -ness suffix turns an adjective or quality word into an abstract noun naming the state or condition. The wording preserves that uncertainty: the older history is best read as a cautious account rather than a fully settled chain. The modern sense is largely compositional, with the historical elements narrowing into a stable English lexical item. In current use it covers the state of being stretched tight or tense. The wider family includes related words such as taut and tauten. ## Topics - Law & Government - Word Formation & Derivatives markdown