Speakur

Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

tense

/tɛns/

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.95 in modern English

Syllables
tense
IPA
/tɛns/
5
Scrabble Score
5
Letters
1
Syllables
4
Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

The property of indicating the point in time at which an action or state of being occurs or exists.

Uncountable

noun

An inflected form of a verb that indicates tense.

Countable

noun

A grammatical aspect.

Countable

noun

A verb form or construction indicating a combination of tense, aspect, and mood.

Countable

verb

To apply a tense to.

Transitive verb

adj

Showing signs of stress or strain; not relaxed.

adj

Characterized by strain (on the nerves, emotions, etc). (Compare charged.)

adj

Pulled taut, without any slack.

Example Sentences

Etymology

From Middle English tens, from Old French tens (modern French temps), from Latin tempus. Doublet of tempo and tempus.

Origin

Word Breakdown

Usage

Inflected Forms

tenses (plural) tenses (present, singular) tensing (participle, present) tensed (participle, past) tensed (past) tenser (comparative) tensest (superlative)

Derived Forms

tensal tenseless hypertense overtense tensely tensen tenseness tensible tensification tensor ultratense untense

Phrases

absolute tense aorist tense compound tense conditional tense continuous tense future tense hodiernal tense imperfect tense

Frequently Paired Words

See: Category:en:Tenses tend tension tent intense

Synonyms

stressed unrelaxed taut strain tense up

Rhymes With

sense defense self-defense defence self-defence intense hence offense expense fence dense immense

Questions

How do you pronounce tense?
The recorded pronunciation is /tɛns/.
What does tense mean?
The property of indicating the point in time at which an action or state of being occurs or exists.
Where does tense come from?
It is traced to Middle English.

How to pronounce tense

  1. Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “tense”.
  2. Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/tɛns/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
  3. Play the audio — Click Play to hear reference audio for “tense”.
  4. Repeat and practice — Say “tense” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.