How to Use tighten up in a Sentence

tighten up

phrasal verb

• There’s a lot for Williams and the offense as a whole to tighten up and improve.
  — Brad Biggs, Chicago Tribune, 11 Aug. 2024
• But since then, firms have taken more steps to tighten up their rules.
  — Gillian Tan, Fortune, 22 May 2024
• One more slow start and the Heat might tighten up beyond repair.
  — Tara Sullivan, BostonGlobe.com, 26 May 2023
• Largo tightened up its zone defense and the Bears just couldn’t find an answer.
  — Mike Frainie, Baltimore Sun, 16 Mar. 2024
• So, her first instinct was to tighten up and be prepared.
  — Karu F. Daniels, New York Daily News, 9 Apr. 2024
• The caffeine in coffee tightens up the blood-brain barrier and can decrease how much of the drug makes it to your brain.
  — Courtney Southwick, Health, 23 July 2024
• The Lynx tightened up its defense to slow down the Mercury’s ball movement and the team only made two on 11 attempts in the second half.
  — Jenna Ortiz, The Arizona Republic, 26 May 2023
• But the message from Dutcher during a timeout was, ahem, to tighten up the defense.
  — Mark Zeigler, San Diego Union-Tribune, 18 Jan. 2024
• When Thorne first joined forces with Hewlett, the focus was on tightening up some of his mechanics.
  — Ainslie Lee | [e-mail], al, 21 Aug. 2023
• Then Oettinger tightened up, and the top line responded.
  — Kevin Sherrington, Dallas News, 12 May 2023
• The win was dominant across the board, but there were still areas the Crimson Tide could stand to tighten up before Texas comes to Tuscaloosa next week.
  — Matt Stahl | [e-mail], al, 3 Sep. 2023
• More commonly known as a charley horse, a nighttime leg cramp is when the muscles in a leg quickly tighten up.
  — Erica Lamberg, Fox News, 4 Feb. 2024
• The team has spent the past three weeks working out the kinks, tightening up holes on the defensive side, and bolstering its roster.
  — Michelle Kaufman, Miami Herald, 30 Jan. 2024
• Another Reddit poster suggests there may be a cat and mouse game behind the scenes as Google tightens up.
  — Zak Doffman, Forbes, 1 Mar. 2024
• Can’t give up both The Suns have tried to tighten up giving up points in the paint with ball containment, gap control and creating a tighter shell on that end.
  — Duane Rankin, The Arizona Republic, 8 Jan. 2024
• In Game 2, Florida’s defense tightened up and limited the Oilers from getting good looks for most of the night.
  — Jordan McPherson, Miami Herald, 11 June 2024
• With the exception of my tensor fasciae latae (TFL) muscle tightening up and the nagging cold, the rest of my body felt okay.
  — Michael Clinton, Men's Health, 14 June 2023
• His forearm tightened up while warming up before the fourth inning.
  — Anthony Gharib, USA TODAY, 8 Aug. 2023
• Last two pitches, really started to tighten up on me a little bit.
  — Bill Plunkett, Orange County Register, 10 Aug. 2024
• As the game wore on, both defense and midfield units tightened up and several players on each side battled cramping.
  — Jacob Steinberg, Baltimore Sun, 12 Sep. 2023
• The Fox crew would also get an idea of what mechanics Brady needs to tighten up after seeing his performance in what would amount to a dress rehearsal.
  — Bob Raissman, New York Daily News, 10 Aug. 2024
• And Shanahan’s propensity to tighten up in big moments — to become even more conservative when the game is one the line — can’t be ignored.
  — Dieter Kurtenbach, The Mercury News, 26 Jan. 2024
• Instead, prepare to tighten up your remote or hybrid work policies because the practice is here to stay.
  — Byamber Burton, Fortune, 6 July 2023
• City tightened up their defense on Edmondson’s next possession, forcing the Red Storm deep into the shot clock.
  — Mike Frainie, Baltimore Sun, 21 Feb. 2024
• Keep your glutes engaged, and tighten up your core by thinking about squeezing your belly button back towards your spine.
  — Cori Ritchey, Men's Health, 31 Aug. 2023
• Texas scored two runs in the first to tie the game on a Adolis Garcia home run — his first of three on Saturday night — then plated five runs in the second, four in the third and two in the fifth to give Heaney plenty of room to tighten up.
  — Shawn McFarland, Dallas News, 23 Apr. 2023
• Things feel a bit sweaty and effortful, especially in the early going — not the finest quality in a farce, though the cast may well settle into the show and tighten up its rhythms.
  — Trey Graham, Washington Post, 13 Feb. 2024
• Ohtani is expected back in the lineup Monday, needing just a one-day break after his back tightened up on him Saturday night.
  — Houston Mitchell, Los Angeles Times, 13 May 2024
• The defense that's been devastated by injuries at linebacker and safety has forced six turnovers over the same span, tightening up when there was no other choice.
  — Will Graves, USA TODAY, 8 Jan. 2024
• China, this conservative camp concluded, had to resist the urge to reform and instead tighten up the existing system.
  — David Shambaugh, Foreign Affairs, 30 Nov. 2022

Last Updated: 14 Nov 2024