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Synonyms and Antonyms of stiff

  1. 1 incapable of or highly resistant to bending <use a stiff piece of paper for the project> Synonyms inflexible, rigid, stiffened, unyielding Related Words inelastic; firm, hard, solid, sound, strong; brittle, crisp; compact, dense, substantial; arthritic, rheumatic; nonelastic, nonmalleable Near Antonyms elastic, resilient, springy, stretchy, workable; malleable, plastic; semiflexible; droopy, flabby, flaccid, mushy, semisoft, soft, squashy, squishy; lank, limber, limp, lissome (also lissom), lithe, lithesome, willowy Antonyms flexible, floppy, pliable, pliant, supple, yielding

  2. 2 difficult to endure <stiff winds> Synonyms bitter, brutal, burdensome, cruel, excruciating, grievous, grim, hard, hardhanded, heavy, inhuman, murderous, onerous, oppressive, rough, rugged, searing, severe, harsh, tough, tryingRelated Words austere, bleak, comfortless, discomforting, forbidding, inhospitable, spartan, uncomfortable; biting, inclement, intemperate, wild; rigorous, strict, stringent; agonizing, heartbreaking, heartrending, painful, wretched; crushing, grinding, overwhelming, wearing; insufferable, insupportable, intolerable, unbearable, unendurable; harrowing, tortuous; bad, disagreeable, hostile, unfriendly, unpleasantNear Antonyms comfortable, cozy, luxurious, snug; agreeable, friendly, genial, hospitable, pleasant; peaceful, relaxing, reposeful, restful; bearable, endurable, painless, tolerable; balmy, calm, clement, gentle, mild, moderate, temperateAntonyms easy, light, soft

  3. 3 going beyond a normal or acceptable limit in degree or amount <don't you think that's a pretty stiff fine for such a minor infraction?> Synonyms baroque, devilish, exorbitant, extravagant, extreme, fancy, immoderate, inordinate, insane, intolerable, lavish, overdue, overextravagant, overmuch, overweening, plethoric, steep, excessive, towering, unconscionable, undue, unmercifulRelated Words boundless, endless, immeasurable, infinite, limitless; unbearable, unjustifiable, unwarranted; improper, inappropriate, thick, unseemly; unrestrainedNear Antonyms deficient, inadequate, insufficient; minimal, minimumAntonyms middling, moderate, modest, reasonable, temperate

  4. 4 having a consistency that does not easily yield to pressure <stir two cups of flour with the remaining ingredients to make a stiff dough> Synonyms compact, hard, rigid, solid, firm, unyieldingRelated Words case-hardened, compacted, compressed, hardened, indurated, stiffened, tempered; close, dense, heavy, thick, thickset; inelastic, inflexible, ramrod, unbending; compressed, condensed; adamantine, rocklike; sturdy, substantial; impenetrable, impermeable, nonporousNear Antonyms loose, scattered, thin; bendable, elastic, flexible, malleable, pliable, pliant, supple; droopy, flaccid, floppy, lank, limp, slack; airy, light; permeable, porous; ultrasoftAntonyms flabby, soft, spongy, squashy, squishy

  5. 5 lacking social grace and assurance <felt stiff and ill-at-ease whenever she was introduced to her father's friends> Synonyms clumsy, gauche, graceless, inelegant, rough-hewn, rustic (also rustical), awkward, stilted, uncomfortable, uneasy, ungraceful, woodenRelated Words angular, gawky, lubberly, ungainly; boorish, clownish, uncouth; abashed, discomfited, discomforted, discomposed, disconcerted, discountenanced, embarrassed; self-conscious; agitated, bothered, chagrined, dismayed, disquieted, distressed, disturbed, fazed, flustered, jittery, jumpy, mortified, nervous, nonplussed (also nonplused), perturbed, rattled, unhinged, unsettled, upset; diffident, insecure, meek, modest, self-doubting, timid, unassertive, unassuming, unpretentiousNear Antonyms assured, calm, collected, composed, confident, cool, placid, poised, secure, self-assured, self-confident, self-possessed, serene, tranquil, undisturbed, unperturbedAntonyms graceful, suave, urbane

  6. 6 requiring considerable physical or mental effort <we'll have a stiff climb to actually reach the summit> Synonyms arduous, Augean, backbreaking, challenging, demanding, difficult, effortful, exacting, formidable, grueling (or gruelling), heavy, hellacious, herculean, killer, laborious, moiling, murderous, pick-and-shovel, rigorous, rough, rugged, severe, hard, strenuous, sweaty, tall, testing, toilsome, tough, uphillRelated Words abstract, abstruse, complex, complicated, elusive, hairy, insoluble, intricate, involved, knotty, opaque, problematic (also problematical), recondite, serious, spiny, stubborn, thorny, ticklish, tricky; bruising, burdensome, exhausting, labored, onerous, oppressive, stressful, taxing, tight, trying; annoying, bothersome, distressing, irksome, troublesome, vexatious; grievous, grim, strict, stringent; brutal, cruel, inhuman, painfulNear Antonyms achievable, clear, doable, elementary, manageable, uncomplicated; comforting, gentle, painless, relaxed, smooth, soothing; accessible, friendly, idiotproof, user-friendlyAntonyms cheap, easy, effortless, facile, light, mindless, simple, soft, undemanding

  7. 7 marked by or showing careful attention to set forms and details <the stiff politeness with which I was greeted suggested that they weren't truly happy to see me> Synonyms correct, decorous, formal, nice, proper, punctilious, starchy, ceremonious, stiff-necked, stiltedRelated Words sober, solemn, stately; chivalrous, courtly, gallant; genteel, polished, refined; civil, courteous, polite, red-carpetNear Antonyms improper, indecorous, unmannerly; discourteous, impolite, rudeAntonyms casual, easygoing, informal, laid-back, unceremonious




Synonyms and Antonyms of stiff

  1. 1 a dead body <to the mortician, a stiff was a stiff and they were all pretty much alike> Synonyms bones, cadaver, carcass, corpus, corse [archaic], relics, remains, corpseRelated Words mummy; carnage, carrion; ashes; deceased, decedent

  2. 2 a member of the human race <one lucky stiff will get the biggest jackpot in the lottery's history> Synonyms baby, being, bird, bod [British], body, character, cookie (or cooky), creature, customer, devil, duck, egg, face, fish, guy, head, human being, individual, life, man, mortal, party, person, personage, scout, slob, sort, soul, specimen, human, thing, wightRelated Words hominid, homo, humanoid; brother, fellow, fellowman, neighbor; celebrity, personality, self, somebodyNear Antonyms animal, beast, beastie, brute, critter



Synonyms and Antonyms of stiff

  1. 1 to deliberately ignore or treat rudely <the actress has a reputation for stiffing the press at red-carpet events> Synonyms cold-shoulder, cut, high-hat, slight, snub, stiff-armRelated Words isolate, ostracize; brush (aside or off), disdain, rebuff, reject, repel, repulse, scorn, spurn; disregard, forget, neglect, overlook, overpass, pass over, shrug off

  2. 2 to rob by the use of trickery or threats <customers who were too embarrassed to admit that they had been stiffed by an Internet company selling sexual aids> Synonyms beat, bilk, bleed, cheat, chisel, chouse, con, cozen, defraud, diddle, do, do in, euchre, fiddle, flimflam, gaff, gyp, hose [slang], hustle, mulct, nobble [British slang], pluck, ream, rip off, rook, screw, shake down, short, shortchange, skin, skunk, squeeze, stick, fleece, sting, sucker, swindle, thimblerig, victimizeRelated Words extort, wrench, wrest, wring; clip, gouge, nick, overcharge, soak; exploit, milk; deceive, dupe, fool, gull, trick; rope (in); betray, bitch, double-cross; bamboozle, fast-talk

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to criticize in a loud and angry way

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philistine lazy melancholy frenetic
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