tighten up

phrasal verb

tightened up; tightening up; tightens up

: to become more strict or effective or to make (something) more strict or effective

Security around the building has tightened up recently.

They tightened up security around the building.

Examples of tighten up in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

These examples are automatically compiled from online sources to illustrate current usage. Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

But the race was expected to tighten up since Nicole Ford, the third primary candidate who received 17.3% of the vote, later endorsed Stebbins. —

Robert Salonga, The Mercury News, 6 Nov. 2024 Polling tightened up toward the end of Kelly's race for governor, too. —

Kayla Dwyer, The Indianapolis Star, 23 Oct. 2024 Prime examples include jaw issues like pain, clicking, popping, and locking (since a forward leaning head can take your jaw out of ideal alignment), as well as increased chances of tension headaches, because the neck muscles that attach to the base of your skull tighten up, Dr. Harding says. —

Jenny McCoy, SELF, 23 Oct. 2024 The coaching staff would tell you the offense needs to get better in every regard, and there is a lot to tighten up. —

Brad Biggs, Chicago Tribune, 23 Oct. 2024 See all Example Sentences for tighten up