the action of stretching something tight; "tension holds the belt in the pulleys"
(physics) a stress that produces an elongation of an elastic physical body; "the direction of maximum tension moves asymptotically toward the direction of the shear"
a balance between and interplay of opposing elements or tendencies (especially in art or literature); "there is a tension created between narrative time and movie time"; "there is a tension between these approaches to understanding history"
(psychology) a state of mental or emotional strain or suspense; "he suffered from fatigue and emotional tension"; "stress is a vasoconstrictor"
the physical condition of being stretched or strained; "it places great tension on the leg muscles"; "he could feel the tenseness of her body"
afflicted with or marked by anxious uneasiness or trouble or grief; "too upset to say anything"; "spent many disquieted moments"; "distressed about her son's leaving home"; "lapsed into disturbed sleep"; "worried parents"; "a worried frown"; "one last worried check of the sleeping children"
characterized by unrest or disorder; "unquiet days of riots"; "following the assassination of Martin Luter King ours was an unquiet nation"; "spent an unquiet night tossing and turning"
in fear or dread of possible evil or harm; "apprehensive for one's life"; "apprehensive of danger"
mentally upset over possible misfortune or danger etc; "apprehensive about her job"; "not used to a city and worried about small things"; "felt apprehensive about the consequences"
quick to understand; "a kind and apprehensive friend"- Nathaniel Hawthorne
marked by courage and determination in the face of difficulties or danger; robust and uninhibited; "you have to admire her; it was a gutsy thing to do"; "the gutsy...intensity of her musical involvement"-Judith Crist; "a gutsy red wine"
doing something in opposition to another way of doing it that you don't like; "his style of painting was a reaction against cubism"
a bodily process occurring due to the effect of some foregoing stimulus or agent; "a bad reaction to the medicine"; "his responses have slowed with age"
an idea evoked by some experience; "his reaction to the news was to start planning what to do"
extreme conservatism in political or social matters; "the forces of reaction carried the election"
a response that reveals a person's feelings or attitude; "he was pleased by the audience's reaction to his performance"; "John feared his mother's reaction when she saw the broken lamp"
(mechanics) the equal and opposite force that is produced when any force is applied to a body; "every action has an equal and opposite reaction"
characterized by or indicative of distress or affliction or danger or need; "troubled areas"; "fell into a troubled sleep"; "a troubled expression"; "troubled teenagers"