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(), a.[Compar.Stiffer (); superl.Stiffest.] [OE. stif, AS. stf; akin to D. stijf, G. steif, Dan. stiv, Sw. styf, Icel. stfr, Lith. stipti to be stiff; cf. L. stipes a post, trunk of a tree, stipare to press, compress. Cf. Costive, Stifle, Stipulate, Stive to stuff.] 1. Not easily bent; not flexible or pliant; not limber or flaccid; rigid; firm; as, stiff wood, paper, joints. [They] rising on stiff pennons, tower The mid arial sky. Milton. 2. Not liquid or fluid; thick and tenacious; inspissated; neither soft nor hard; as, the paste is stiff. 3. Firm; strong; violent; difficult to oppose; as, a stiff gale or breeze. 4. Not easily subdued; unyielding; stubborn; obstinate; pertinacious; as, a stiff adversary. It is a shame to stand stiff in a foolish argument. Jer. Taylor. A war ensues: the Cretans own their cause, Stiff to defend their hospitable laws. Dryden. 5. Not natural and easy; formal; constrained; affected; starched; as, stiff behavior; a s スポンサード リンク
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