1. (n.) 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.

2. (a.) Stretched tightly; strained to stiffness; rigid; not lax; as, a tense fiber.

accented agitated all-overish alveolar antsy anxious anxioused up aorist apical apico-alveolar apico-dental apprehensive articulated assimilated back barytone bilabial bothered brace broad cacuminal central cerebral checked chill chilly chronology close cold concerned consonant consonantal continuant continue continuity cool dental disaccordant disquieted disquieting dissimilated distressed distressing disturbed disturbing dorsal drag out dragged out draw draw out drawn drawn out duration durative duree edgy elongate elongated extend extended fearful fidgety firm flat fluttery foreboding fraught front frosty fussy future future perfect glide glossal glottal guttural hard haul heave heavy high high-strung historical present icy imperfect in a pucker in a stew in suspense incompatible inhospitable inimical intense intonated jittery jumpy keyed up keyed-up labial labiodental labiovelar lastingness lateral lax lengthen lengthen out lengthened let out light lingual liquid low mid misgiving monophthongal muted narrow nasal nasalized nerve-racking nervous nervy occlusive on edge on tenterhooks on tiptoe open overanxious overapprehensive overexert overextend overstrain overtax overwrought oxytone palatal palatalized past past perfect perfect period perturbed pharyngeal pharyngealized phonemic phonetic phonic pitch pitched pluperfect point tense pokerlike posttonic present present perfect press preterit produce progressive tense prolong prolongate prolongated prolonged protract protracted psychological time pull pulled queasy quivering rack ramrodlike reinforce renitent restive restless retroflex rigid rigidify rodlike rounded rusty screw up semivowel shore up soft solicitous sonant space space-time spin out spun out starched starchy stiff stiff as buckram stiffen stopped straggling strain strain every nerve strained strengthen stress stressed stressful stretch stretch out stretched stretched out stretched tight string out strong strung out surd suspenseful sweat blood syllabic taut tauten tax tension term the future the past the present thick throaty tide tight tighten time timebinding tonal tonic trice up troubled tug twangy unaccented unamiable unamicable uncordial under a strain uneasy unfriendly ungenial unharmonious unquiet unrelaxed unrestful unrounded unsettled unsociable unstressed