adj.
1 difficult to bend/move
VERBS
▪ be , feel , lie , look , sit , stand
▪
She lay ~ and still beside him.
▪ become , get , go
▪
My fingers had gone ~ with cold.
ADVERB
▪ extremely , fairly , very , etc.
▪ a little , slightly , etc.
▪ all
PREPOSITION
▪ with
▪
The clothes were ~ with dust and grease.
PHRASES
▪ (as) ~ as a board
▪
The captain stood as ~ as a board.
2 having sore muscles
VERBS
▪ be , feel
▪
He felt ~ all over.
▪ get
▪
You'll get ~ if you don't have a hot bath.
▪ leave sb , make sb
▪
All that digging made me really ~.
ADVERB
▪ extremely , fairly , very , etc.
▪ a little , slightly , etc.
▪ all
▪
My arm's gone all ~.
PREPOSITION
▪ from
▪
I was ~ from kneeling.
3 strong/severe
VERBS
▪ be , seem
▪
Their punishment seemed rather ~.
ADVERB
▪ extremely , fairly , very , etc.
▪
in the face of some very ~ competition
▪ a little , slightly , etc.
4 not friendly or relaxed
VERBS
▪ be , look , seem , sound
▪
She was aware that her words sounded ~.
ADVERB
▪ extremely , fairly , very , etc.
▪
His manner seemed rather ~ and impersonal.
▪ a little , slightly , etc.
Stiff is used with these nouns: ↑ back , ↑ bow , ↑ brandy , ↑ breeze , ↑ broom , ↑ brush , ↑ cardboard , ↑ challenge , ↑ collar , ↑ competition , ↑ drink , ↑ fine , ↑ formality , ↑ gin , ↑ joint , ↑ knee , ↑ leg , ↑ limb , ↑ muscle , ↑ neck , ↑ opposition , ↑ paste , ↑ penalty , ↑ posture , ↑ resistance , ↑ sentence , ↑ task , ↑ test , ↑ whisky , ↑ wind , ↑ wire