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What is "straighten"

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straighten
Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English
straighten
verb
COLLOCATIONS FROM OTHER ENTRIES
straighten/square your shoulders (=stand with your shoulders straight, in a determined way)
▪ She squared her shoulders and knocked on the door.
COLLOCATIONS FROM CORPUS
■ ADVERB
out
▪ It certainly would have straightened out a lot of Brunel's more tortuous routes!
▪ Then finally the Friendship straightened out and again disappeared, this time for good, heading northeast.
▪ We had our own personality question to straighten out.
▪ Part of me knows we have to get him straightened out and functioning better with the other members of the team.
▪ I dropped my eyes to my foot, straightened out the tongue, and stood up.
▪ My aim in this chapter will be to straighten out the rhetorical mess.
▪ And while you're here, let's see if we can get you straightened out.
▪ Jen had been a bad girl as a kid and probably seemed to him to be straightening out.
then
▪ Lie flat, bend the knees then straighten the legs upwards so that they are at right angles to your body. 14.
▪ Lying on your back, first bend the knees then straighten the legs. 13.
▪ Start as before, first bending the knees, then straightening the legs. 13.
▪ Hair by Rudi Kartal Hair has been straightened then graduated and layered.
▪ Bending your arms, lower your upper body backwards towards the ground and then straighten them without locking the elbows.
▪ Relax forwards, then straighten up and repeat to the other side.
▪ Lie flat, bend the knees, then straighten the legs upwards.
up
▪ He straightened up, twisting the silken threads, running them through his fingers.
▪ After negotiating the slope of the gutter he straightened up.
▪ After a while she straightened up and I poured her a fresh cup of tea.
▪ Then he straightened up, and, carrying something, slid out through the window on to the lawn.
▪ The car rocked, straightened up.
▪ It was as if a maid service had come here and straightened up.
▪ When I straightened up I heard a slight sound behind me.
▪ Pierre, now 20, says he really straightened up his act after Lyndi was born.
■ NOUN
back
▪ Grout turned away, straightened his back and brought his head up, ignoring Ashton pointedly as he walked proudly away.
▪ Lean on your shovel for one second to straighten your back, and there was Bud to remind you.
▪ There was hardware available to straighten women's backs, necks, and shoulders.
▪ Jose rests his burden on the ground and straightens his back to full measure.
▪ Slowly, Damian straightened, lifting her back to her feet.
▪ I could only agree with that, which straightened my back.
leg
▪ Lie flat, bend the knees then straighten the legs upwards so that they are at right angles to your body. 14.
▪ Lying on your back, first bend the knees then straighten the legs. 13.
▪ Now raise your arms above your head, straightening the legs and your spine.
▪ As you bend and straighten your legs, make a large circle with your arms.
▪ Gradually straighten the legs until you are standing upright, then lower slowly to the floor without jerking.
▪ Start as before, first bending the knees, then straightening the legs. 13.
▪ Bend and straighten the leg 8 times, then repeat with the other leg.
shoulder
▪ He would have thrown out the shirt with the slightly frayed cuff and straightened his shoulders.
▪ The Doctor sniffed, blew his nose on his handkerchief, and straightened his shoulders.
▪ He snapped at the men to pick up their feet and straighten their shoulders.
▪ He tried drawing in his stomach and straightening his shoulders, as instructed by the physical education teacher.
▪ She straightened her shoulders and gazed up at the unremitting blue of the sky.
▪ So, he was at it already, she thought, straightening her shoulders.
tie
▪ We put on our képis, straightened our ties, pulled our fingers into regulation gloves and set off for the guardhouse.
▪ Li stands, straightens his tie, formally shakes my hand, and moves purposefully down the hallway.
▪ I stuffed my shirt tail back into my trousers and tried to straighten my tie.
▪ The rest of the attorneys straightened their ties, leaned their heads in their hands.
▪ Ali Christie was straightening his tie as he reached the bottom of the stairs.
▪ Manville paused to straighten his tie before stepping through.
▪ I straightened my tie and guided my hair back with my hands.
▪ Uncle Philip, huge and sombre, came on to the stage, straightening his bow tie, which was askew.
■ VERB
try
▪ He tried to straighten up and nearly stumbled.
▪ I tried to straighten it out but I think I only made it worse.
▪ She was trying to straighten an anorak around Sonja's pitifully slight frame.
▪ Lift the chair with your head still against the wall. Try to straighten up while still holding the chair.
▪ But he doesn't review them, he doesn't try to straighten out the sheets yet again - not now anyway.
▪ Then you have to stand there trying to straighten out the wrinkled piece of money.
▪ He tried to straighten out the brim but it had been curled and folded so often it was beyond repair.
▪ I tried to straighten up, but another wave of nausea swept over me and I vomited again.
EXAMPLES FROM OTHER ENTRIES
▪ Alan straightened in his chair.
▪ Gradually straighten your legs until you are standing upright.
▪ I had trouble straightening up after I bent down to pick up the coins.
▪ I want to get the house straightened up before everyone gets here.
▪ She straightened up as Melissa approached, pulling off her gardening gloves.
▪ The car's in the garage having its front bumper straightened.
▪ The road twisted and turned and then straightened out.
▪ Try straightening your arm.
EXAMPLES FROM CORPUS
▪ Heating an implement made of a straightened safety pin, he speared the bugs, then brought them to the candle flame.
▪ It will speak the truth and straighten the record.
▪ Lean on your shovel for one second to straighten your back, and there was Bud to remind you.
▪ Repeat all movements on 1 leg without straightening it.
▪ The operation also included straightening a tooth that grew out at a 45-degree angle.
▪ The papers on the table have been straightened.
The Collaborative International Dictionary
Straighten

Straighten \Straight"en\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Straighted; p. pr. & vb. n. Straighting.]

  1. To make straight; to reduce from a crooked to a straight form.

  2. To make right or correct; to reduce to order; as, to straighten one's affairs; to straighten an account.

    To straighten one's face, to cease laughing or smiling, etc., and compose one's features.

Straighten

Straighten \Straight"en\, v. t. A variant of Straiten. [Obs. or R.]

Related phrases:
Douglas Harper's Etymology Dictionary
straighten

1540s (transitive), from straight (adj.1) + -en (1). Intransitive sense from 1891. Related: Straightened; straightening; straightener. The Middle English verb was simply straight (late 14c.).

Wiktionary
straighten

vb. 1 (context transitive English) To cause to become straight. 2 (context intransitive English) To become straight. 3 (context transitive English) To put in order#Adjective; to sort#Verb; to tidy up.

Related phrases:
WordNet
straighten

  1. v. straighten up or out; make straight [syn: unbend] [ant: bend]

  2. make straight [syn: straighten out]

  3. get up from a sitting or slouching position; "The students straightened when the teacher entered"

  4. put (things or places) in order; "Tidy up your room!" [syn: tidy, tidy up, clean up, neaten, straighten out, square away]

  5. straighten by unrolling; "roll out the big map" [syn: roll out]

  6. make straight or straighter; "Straighten this post"; "straighten hair"

Related phrases:

Usage examples of "straighten".

Already, with actorish skills, he was firming up his eyes and straightening his back.

Then he straightened out the ailerons and elevators, and began to run on a level keel.

He straightened himself and shifted his body well forward on the flimsy little aluminium platform and gripped the steering-arm, keeping his elbows well in to his sides.

The big amphibian went into a barrel roll, straightened out and dived.

By and by I got it straightened out into the anagram business Macgillivray had mentioned.

In one smooth motion, the Argon straightened to his full height, then proceeded to gaze down at her.

By the time Arista came over to straighten me out, I had what I needed.

He straightened his back, leant forward again so his face was close to mine and I got almost as much of his cancer stick smoke as if I had after all kept the one he had given me.

He leaned towards Atene, drawn perhaps by the passion shining in her beauteous eyes, then of a sudden straightened himself, shook his head and sighed.

Straightening, he went out to Azar who now stood with her hand lightly resting on the wall.

Hogan heard the volley, very distantly, and then came the bells clamouring and he straightened his uniform, took off his bicorne hat, and went into the Cathedral.

Mrs Biggs straightened up and went through to the gyp room to make coffee while Zipser shifted feebly in the chair.

Morgan smoothed his cowlick and straightened the collar on his best blue shirt as he sat in his buckboard gazing down the road.

He straightened in his saddle, and it seemed to Sam that his metallic gaze fell on each bushwhacker in turn.

He straightened his back and looked down the byre as if seeing into the past.