tension
[noun]
Synonyms:
- suspense, anxiety, apprehension, hostility, nervousness, pressure, strain, stress, unease
- tightness, pressure, rigidity, stiffness, stress, stretching, tautness

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Antonyms: relaxation
Related Idioms: stress and strain
Related Words: tautness, tenseness, tightness, strain, stress, anxiety, nerves, nervousness, uneasiness, agitation, discomfort, disquiet, misease

[TahlilGaran] English Synonym Dictionary ▲

ten‧sion W2 AC /ˈtenʃən/ noun
[Word Family: noun: tenseness, tension; verb: tense; adverb: tensely; adjective: tense]
[Date: 1500-1600; Language: French; Origin: Latin tensio, from tendere; ⇒ tend]

1. NERVOUS FEELING [uncountable] a nervous worried feeling that makes it impossible for you to relax ⇒ tense:
The tension was becoming unbearable, and I wanted to scream.
reduce/relieve/ease etc tension
Exercise is the ideal way to relieve tension after a hard day.

2. NO TRUST [countable usually plural, uncountable] the feeling that exists when people or countries do not trust each other and may suddenly attack each other or start arguing
political/racial/social etc tension
In those days, there was a great deal of racial tension on campus.
tension between
The obvious tension between Warren and Anne made everyone else uncomfortable.

3. DIFFERENT INFLUENCES [uncountable and countable] if there is tension between two things, there is a difference between the needs or influences of each, and that causes problems
tension between
In business, there’s always a tension between the needs of customers and shareholders.

4. TIGHTNESS [uncountable] tightness or stiffness in a wire, rope, muscle etc:
Tension in the neck muscles can cause headaches.
Muscle tension can be a sign of stress.

5. FORCE [uncountable] the amount of force that stretches something:
This wire will take 50 pounds tension.
tension on
There was a lot of tension on the wire before it snapped.

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

tension
noun
I. inability to relax
ADJ. inner | emotional, muscle/muscular, nervous, pre-menstrual, sexual He suffers from nervous tension.
VERB + TENSION feel, suffer from I feel some tension in my shoulders.
sense As soon as he entered, he sensed a tension in the air.
cause, create | relieve | release
TENSION + NOUN headache
PREP. ~ in The hot bath eased the tension in his body.
PHRASES a release of tension Laughter can be a great release of tension.
a sign of tension Horses are very sensitive to signs of tension in humans.

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

tension
II. bad feeling between people, countries, etc.
ADJ. considerable, great, high More police have been sent to areas of high political tension.
slight | growing, heightened, increased, increasing, mounting | constant | unresolved | renewed | ethnic, political, racial, religious, social | communal, family, internal, international, national, regional
VERB + TENSION cause, create, generate | defuse, ease, reduce She often used humour to defuse tension in meetings.
heighten
TENSION + VERB build up, grow, increase, mount, rise | ease | be palpable
PREP. ~ among The tension among the audience was palpable.
~ between tension between local youths and the police
~ in/within The redundancies caused greater tensions within the company.
~ over There has been increased tension over the border incident.
~ with renewed tension with France
PHRASES a source of tension Money was always a source of tension between her parents.

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

tension
III. of rope, wire, etc.
ADJ. string
VERB + TENSION adjust This old racket needs its string tension adjusted.
release
PREP. in ~ The metal is weak in tension.
under ~ Stay clear of cables which are under tension.
~ on The sudden tension on the line told me I had hooked a fish.

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

tension

unbearable
The tension was almost unbearable by the time we reached the decisive last round.
nervous tension
The night before the wedding my mother was in a state of nervous tension.
high tension
There was a moment of high tension as the firemen entered the burning building.
dramatic tension (=the tension you feel when you are not sure quite what will happen in a story)
This uncertainty adds to the film’s dramatic tension.
reduce/ease/relieve tension
Breathing deeply helps to clear my mind and reduce tension.
sense the tension
She could sense the tension in the room.
a state of tension
Marjorie lived in a constant state of tension waiting for his phone calls.
an atmosphere of tension
Voting took place in an atmosphere of tension.
racial tension
Racial tension boiled over and riots quickly spread.
social tension
The economic crisis was accompanied by mounting social tension.
political tension
The heightened political tension could easily spill over into violence.
tension is/remains high
After the election, political tension remains high.
increasing/growing/mounting/rising tension
There are reports of increasing tension in some areas.
heightened tension (=greater than before)
a time of heightened tension between the two countries
defuse tension (=make a situation more friendly)
He searched for ways of defusing racial tension.
raise/increase the tension
The arrests only served to raise the tension.
a source of tension
This agreement should remove a major source of tension among America’s allies.

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲