tensionten‧sion /ˈtenʃən/ ●●○ W3 AWL noun 
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.2no 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 arguingpolitical/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.3different influences [countable, uncountable] if there is tension between two things, there is a difference between the needs or influences of each, and that causes problemstension between In business, there’s always a tension between the needs of customers and shareholders.4tightness [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.5force [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.COLLOCATIONS– Meaning 1adjectivesunbearable· 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.verbsreduce/ease/relieve tension· Breathing deeply helps to clear my mind and reduce tension.sense the tension· She could sense the tension in the room.phrasesa 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.COLLOCATIONS– Meaning 2adjectivesracial 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 countriesverbsdefuse 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.phrasesa source of tension· This agreement should remove a major source of tension among America’s allies.
WORD ORIGINtension
Origin:
1500-1600 French, Latin tensio, from tendere; ➔ TENDEXAMPLES FROM OTHER DICTIONARIES
- Tension in the region has grown due to recent bombings.
- A crowd gathered and tension mounted till the riot broke out.
- Her voice trembled with tension.
- racial tension
- The tension was high in Mexico as the day of the decision approached.
- The room was filled with tension as students waited for the test to begin.
- The rope can take up to 300 pounds of tension.
- Any experienced masseur can tell how often, as they release muscle tension, tears are shed.
- But tensions continue to boil over.
- In general terms, the greater the area of the sail, the higher the tension on the line.
- The atmosphere in her house is thick with tension.
Longman Language Activatora feeling of being nervous
the feeling of being nervous because you are worried or a little frightened about something, especially if this feeling is likely to affect your behaviour or performance: · Normally she's very relaxed and amusing. It must be nerves.a case/attack of nerves: · She had a sudden attack of nerves and refused to go to see the dentist.calm/steady etc your nerves (=try to relax): · Arnie had a drink before the meeting to steady his nerves.suffer from nerves British: · Although a competent teacher, he suffers from nerves when the students behave badly.
a feeling of being nervous and unable to relax, especially before something is about to happen: · Her voice trembled with tension.tension is high (=people feel very nervous): · The tension was high in Mexico as the day of the decision approached.tension mounts (=people feel more and more nervous): · A crowd gathered and tension mounted till the riot broke out.
WORD SETSaether, nounamplitude, nounantimatter, nounantiparticle, nounastrophysics, nounatom, nounatomic, adjectiveattract, verbattraction, nounballistics, nounbeam, nounblack hole, nounbuoyancy, nouncalorie, nouncalorific, adjectivecapillary action, nouncathode ray tube, nouncentre of gravity, nouncentrifugal force, nouncentrifuge, nouncentripetal force, nounchain reaction, nouncondensation, nounconduct, verbconduction, nounconductive, adjectiveconductor, nounconvect, verbconvection, nouncore, nouncritical mass, noundemagnetize, verbdense, adjectivedensity, noundisplacement, noundynamic, adjectiveelectron, nounelementary particle, nounfallout, nounfissile, adjectivefission, nounfocus, verbfrequency, nounfriction, nounfusion, noungamma ray, noungravitation, noungravitational, adjectivegravity, nounhalf-life, nounhertz, nounhydraulic, adjectiveHz, imaging, nounimpetus, nouninertia, nouninvariable, adjectiveion, nounionize, verbkinetic, adjectivelaser, nounlift, nounliquefaction, nounliquefy, verblodestone, nounmagnet, nounmagnetic, adjectivemagnetic field, nounmagnetism, nounmagnetize, verbmass, nounmechanical, adjectivemedium, nounmeltdown, nounmomentum, nounmotive, adjectivemushroom cloud, nounnatural philosophy, nounneutron, nounNewtonian, adjectivenuclear, adjectivenuclear fission, nounnuclear fusion, nounnuclear physics, nounnuclear reactor, nounnucleus, nounoptical fibre, nounparticle accelerator, nounparticle physics, nounphonic, adjectivephosphorescence, nounphosphorescent, adjectivephoto-, prefixphoton, nounphotosensitive, adjectivephotosensitize, verbphysical, adjectivephysicist, nounphysics, nounpivot, nounpolar, adjectivepole, nounpotential energy, nounpower, nounpressure, nounpropulsion, nounproton, nounpull, nounquantum mechanics, nounquantum theory, nounquark, nounradiate, verbradiation, nounradio wave, nounray, nounreaction, nounreactor, nounreflect, verbreflector, nounrefract, verbrelativity, nounrepel, verbrepulsion, nounrepulsive, adjectiveresilience, nounresilient, adjectiveresistance, nounresonance, nounretention, nounsolid-state, adjectivesonic, adjectivesonic boom, nounsound wave, nounspace, nounspecific gravity, nounspectral, adjectivespectroscope, nounspectrum, nounstatics, nounsteady state theory, nounstrain, nounstress, nounsurface tension, nountension, nounthermodynamics, nounthrust, nountraction, nountrajectory, nountransmit, verbultrasonic, adjectiveultrasound, nounvacuum, nounvaporize, verbvapour, nounvector, nounwave, nounwavelength, nounwork, noun
COLLOCATIONS FROM THE ENTRY Meaning 1adjectives The agreement was regarded as a means of defusing ethnic tensions. Sally felt her anger drain away. He’ll give you something to ease the pain.
· The tension was almost unbearable by the time we reached the decisive last round.
· The night before the wedding my mother was in a state of nervous tension.
· There was a moment of high tension as the firemen entered the burning building.
(=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.
verbs· Breathing deeply helps to clear my mind and reduce tension.
· She could sense the tension in the room.
phrases· Marjorie lived in a constant state of tension waiting for his phone calls.
· Voting took place in an atmosphere of tension.
Meaning 2adjectives· Racial tension boiled over and riots quickly spread.
· The economic crisis was accompanied by mounting social tension.
· The heightened political tension could easily spill over into violence.
· After the election, political tension remains high.
· There are reports of increasing tension in some areas.
(=greater than before)· a time of heightened tension between the two countries
verbs (=make a situation more friendly)· He searched for ways of defusing racial tension.
· The arrests only served to raise the tension.
phrases· This agreement should remove a major source of tension among America’s allies.
COLLOCATIONS FROM OTHER ENTRIES The agreement was regarded as a means of defusing ethnic tensions. Sally felt her anger drain away. He’ll give you something to ease the pain. (=a feeling of tension and lack of trust between members of different ethnic groups)· It is feared that the growing ethnic tension could lead to civil war.
(=a feeling of being very tense and nervous)· It was the play’s opening night, and Gloria was in a state of nervous tension.
(=bad feelings between people of different races, which could develop into violence)· His arrest is likely to heighten racial tensions.
· They all laughed and it helped to relieve the tension.
· I could sense the tension in the court as the jury returned.
COLLOCATIONS FROM THE CORPUSADJECTIVE· A constant underlying tension therefore characterized the socio-political structure of the duchy of Aquitaine.· Or did the belief in their inevitable demise subject them to a constant state of tension and anxiety?· The Nazification process thrived on an air of constant tension.· When Stephanopoulos looked back on the struggle, he remembered only its pleasures, not its constant tensions and sixteen-hour days.· His time at Canterbury led to constant tensions with the Crown and periods of exile in Rome.
· To demonstrate dramatic tension. 3.· This should not defuse the dramatic tension.· The key to this lies in dramatic tension.· Playing the game is not in itself drama, though a great deal of dramatic tension arises when it is well played.· We can create dramatic tension by building up expectations.· This increases the urgency of the task, and raises dramatic tension.· The teacher should plan carefully first to create dramatic tension, and then to use it productively.
· Unequal educational gains have further increased social and economic inequalities between regions and classes and have contributed to ethnic and political tensions.· The plagues of aggressive nationalism, racism, chauvinism, xenophobia, anti-semitism and ethnic tension are still widespread.· Moldavia refused to hold the referendum on the grounds that it would worsen ethnic tensions in the republic.
· The high feeling and tension of the afternoon carried over into the night.· In general terms, the greater the area of the sail, the higher the tension on the line.· Tweed, enduring high tension, concealed his shock well.· It is a generally known fact that here our bow is at a very high tension.· The demonstration went ahead on March 28 amid high tension, and in the face of a huge police and troop presence.· The federal army has been called in to act as a buffer in areas of high tension.· Our choice was one which policemen and women from areas of high tension could not appreciate.
· Not only had he spotted excessive muscular tension throughout his body, but now he thought he knew how to correct it.· A trained and skilled practitioner can tailor a session to treat insomnia by reducing muscular tension and promoting relaxation.· We start to lose control of our minds in the same way that muscular tension is often out of our control.· The trouble is that anything you do, nomatterwhat, will nearly always increase the muscular tension and make the situation worse.· This always increases muscular tension which is the very opposite of what you are trying to achieve.· But holding these positions creates muscular tension which, ultimately, replaces one habit with another.· They make no attempt to explore the cause of those tears, concentrating instead on living without muscular tension.· This will ease the muscular tension in the neck so that the chin drops towards the chest.
· Walking will help you to sleep and is an antidote to stress, nervous tension and depression.· The faster machines move the faster man lives and the bigger the tribute in nervous tension he pays to the machine.· In the period leading up to the actual fight, first-time fighters are suddenly stricken with nervous tension.· Passion flower is employed around the world as a mild sedative that reduces nervous tension and anxiety.· In her state of extreme nervous tension she had clutched those dollars so tightly that they'd almost disintegrated.· Others seem to hear your heartbeat and remain in a constant state of nervous tension.· Up in the stand some one giggled with nervous tension.· I didn't sleep the night before the exam because of nervous tension, however, so I didn't do very well.
· With the urban population growing towards 320 million by the year 2000, social and political tensions are likely to increase.· Clinton and Brown overcame early political tensions to forge their strong alliance.· That would help to ensure that political and social tensions were guided through established channels and not forced on to the streets.· The deadlock in electing a president heightened the political tension in the country.· Unequal educational gains have further increased social and economic inequalities between regions and classes and have contributed to ethnic and political tensions.· That generation knows only too well what political tension can mean.· Urging restraint in the development of conventional forces, the statement said that otherwise these could exacerbate political tensions.· This does not mean, however, that there were no political tensions.
· Foreign Secretary Douglas Hurd said that Britain could not risk a new rise in racial tension through immigration.· Both were involved in high-profile incidents last semester that heightened racial tensions on campus.· Longstanding racial tensions and complaints of persistent police harassment of young people underlay the incidents.· Plenty of dope, the occasional weapon, racial tension.· In addition, there was racial tension.· The year was 1921, and Tulsa, Oklahoma, seethed with racial tension.· Would the development of this sort of politics not heighten racial tension and conflict?· Despite its fearless look at racial tensions, the film moves at a relaxed and humorous pace.
· With the urban population growing towards 320 million by the year 2000, social and political tensions are likely to increase.· Holding monetary growth so low virtually dooms the United States to stagnant wages and social tensions.· That would help to ensure that political and social tensions were guided through established channels and not forced on to the streets.· Divorce is falling. Social tensions have lessened.· These weighed as heavily in the social balance as the areas of social tension like Galicia.· The high motivation, skills and adaptability of the new arrivals create social tensions that will be expressed in economic jealousy.· What small political influence it possessed was confined to the immediate post-war years of social tension, inflation and unemployment.· Mounting social tension was accompanied by the swift development of national consciousness among the Empire's ethnic minorities.
NOUN· Any experienced masseur can tell how often, as they release muscle tension, tears are shed.· A series of twitches builds up muscle tension into a sustained contraction.· In this way heart rate, respiration rate, oxygen consumption, and muscle tension all reduce without conscious effort.· They suggested that the newfound connection might explain the apparent link between muscle tension and severe headaches.· Cervical reintegration relieved muscle tension, principally in the neck and back regions, but also locally around specific joints as indicated.· This prolonged tension travels up to your shoulders, neck and face and increases muscle tension in these areas.· Many people control their feelings through muscle tension and may re-experience these feelings spontaneously when the muscle spasm is broken up.
· Our results show that poorly controlled surgical pain significantly reduces tissue-oxygen tension.· More effective lung perfusion and expansion may have contributed to the more favourable arterial-alveolar oxygen tension ratios in the regulated group.· The arterial-alveolar oxygen tension ratio is a useful prognostic indicator.· Tarnow-Mordi etal found the mean arterial-alveolar oxygen tension ratio more closely associated with death than the worst arterial-alveolar oxygen tension ratio.· This accords with our finding that median arterial-alveolar oxygen tension ratio predicts respiratory outcome better than the minimum ratio.· Median and minimum arterial-alveolar oxygen tension ratios for ventilated infants on the first day were significantly lower in the random group.· Wound tissue oxygen tension predicts the risk of wound infection in surgical patients.
· This reduces surface tension allowing a better oxygen mixture therefore making the fuel easier to burn.· The goal is to create a firm surface tension that allows the bread to rise without spreading out sideways.· As they form under the forces of surface tension, they drag the silk into little bundles within them.· The jersey, which was extra small, had shoulder straps that were hanging on by surface tension and willpower.· Similarly an insect walking on the surface of a pond would have gravity counteracted by the surface tension of the water.· The cup was so full, the coffee bulged with surface tension.· From watching raindrops, bubbles and insects walking on ponds it is obvious that water and other liquids have a surface tension.· Of course surface tension was an unknown phenomenon.
VERB· The blockade has added to domestic tension, but also prevented women reaching the refuge.· A series of gale warnings added an edge of tension to the creeping advance of fatigue.· His new parent company may now be adding different tension as he lays plans to rationalise staffing structures.· The timing of female voter decisions adds to the election-eve tension.· To add to the tension Kay's ardent admirer, Ted Latimer, is staying in the hotel across the bay.· There was no logical reason why they should add to the vague tension he'd been conscious of all day.
· She accompanied the daughter three times on visits to help break the tension.· Everyone laughs, breaking the tension.· She could think of no words to break the agonising tension.· Most of the conductors go out, glad to break the tension with a sandwich.· She is talking a little trash in an effort to break the tension in the room.
· Yet Daley remained outwardly serene, sometimes buoyant, while all around him the tension was building.· Male speaker Inside you are going like the clappers because you are nervous and the tension is building up.· This movie is mostly about the tension that builds between these guys, and the conflict between making money and staying friends.· The town's magistrates were told that tension had built up for a year after a decision to dissolve the partnership.· They were very sympathetic but after a while the tension began to build with ever-increasing rows.· It was both an acknowledgement and an easing of the exquisite - almost intolerable tension that had been built up between them.· It was extraordinary how, during such a routine exchange between the two men, tension could build up.
· It caused a lot of tension, riots, and they barricaded the cells.· But this never caused any tension in the show.· Immigration from Comoros has caused tensions on Mayotte.· The vast majority-about 90 percent-are caused by excessive tension in the head and neck muscles.· All this has caused a lot of tension in our marriage.· I wonder if this can tell us anything useful about meeting situations which may cause stressful tension?· This anxiety will cause tension which defeats the purpose of the exercise.· Hearing loss often increases the circumstances which can cause stressful tension.
· The generation gap creates tension Law is now a young profession.· The goal is to create a firm surface tension that allows the bread to rise without spreading out sideways.· These changes have created conflicts and tensions such as between old and new technological trajectories and between national autonomy and international co-operation.· Sometimes he chooses not to say anything, because it would create too much tension.· This separation creates inevitable tensions between the team and the consultant, which are inimical to good multidisciplinary work.· Many of the poems continue to create images of male-female tensions.· In educational drama it is up to the teacher to create and build the tension.· All this created an exquisite tension.
· This should not defuse the dramatic tension.· Maybe the fraught confrontation earlier had defused some of the tension building up between them.· Talks between representatives of the three communities appeared to defuse some of the tension.· They know how helpful tears are to defuse tension and how constructive their aftermath can be.· It, too, has been trying to defuse tensions.· You can always bank on Ally McCoist to defuse the tension.
· The horse slacked his pace, swung his neck down to ease the tension in it, and relaxed his tail.· It was a generous gesture to try to ease the tension and relax a fellow professional.· Finally, his decision to sign no doubt will ease the tension between his government and Washington.· I try to ease the tension for players.· This tends to ease the tension.· This will ease the muscular tension in the neck so that the chin drops towards the chest.· Which, I was beginning to think, might be just what I needed to ease a few tensions.
· She could feel their tension and their eyes on her as she flicked the tuner across the dial desperately.· Since his session with Peter Miller on Saturday, Jim had used the breathing exercise whenever he felt his tension level rising.· Franca could feel the increase of tension in the room.· The high feeling and tension of the afternoon carried over into the night.· She felt a dart of tension.· Just thinking about it made him feel a happy tension.· She felt tension leaving her body.· At this time, the civil rights movement was blooming, and the city felt racial tension.
· The deadlock in electing a president heightened the political tension in the country.· Both were involved in high-profile incidents last semester that heightened racial tensions on campus.· Another area of heightened tension is the controversy over the draft of the new constitution proposed by Mr Mugabe.· The upshot of all this was to heighten the military tension on the divided peninsula.· To some extent, the resistance to Lee reflects the heightened partisan tension in Washington this fall.· But the case has raised eyebrows if not heightened tensions.· The succession struggle is going to heighten tensions between the party's fundamentalist and gradualist factions.· The organizers had strongly denied government accusations that the protest was an attempt to heighten political tensions.
· During the spring there were renewed reports of increasing tension in some areas.· Another source of increasing tension in the federal aid system concerned citizen participation in decisionmaking.· It's like when you increase the tension on a spring: the pressure is straining to be released.· Here as elsewhere in the developing world, traffic snarls have increased tensions and decreased productivity.· The trouble is that anything you do, nomatterwhat, will nearly always increase the muscular tension and make the situation worse.· This always increases muscular tension which is the very opposite of what you are trying to achieve.· To increase this tension further and aggravate the goods famine even more is impossible.· The failure of the talks held in Geneva at the end of September has clouded the horizon and increased tensions.
· On Golding's island there was mounting tension because although the island was almost paradise it did have its problems.· As the seconds before impact ticked away, Poole and Bowman waited with mounting tension.
· This reduces surface tension allowing a better oxygen mixture therefore making the fuel easier to burn.· A trained and skilled practitioner can tailor a session to treat insomnia by reducing muscular tension and promoting relaxation.· Chewing gives psychological satisfaction, and even in scientific experiments the chewing of gum has been found to help reduce tension.· Effective discipline reduces tension and clarifies for children their role, responsibilities, and identity in the world.· The talks were due to include discussions of measures to reduce tension between the two states and to promote bilateral exchanges.· Authorities claim that a short nap can reduce tension and revitalize you.· Our results show that poorly controlled surgical pain significantly reduces tissue-oxygen tension.· Passion flower is employed around the world as a mild sedative that reduces nervous tension and anxiety.
· If you feel yourself tensing up, then spare a few moments to release that tension and see the difference it can make.· She learned, through breathing and imagery, to release the tension.· Any experienced masseur can tell how often, as they release muscle tension, tears are shed.· Davis also told the psychiatrist and a Napa police detective that beating Arlington had helped him release tension.· It releases tension and we need it.· They needed some relief-some --- pressure valve-to release the tension.· It becomes their responsibility to release the pressure and tension within you.· To relax the jaw and release facial tension, pretend to blow out candles.
· If the way is clear, run towards the kite and relieve the tension on the single line.· Being under tremendous stress, facing death, they relieved their tensions by cursing their situations.· There are alternatives which relieve our immediate tension.· We just did it to get off, to relieve some of the tension.· For some, it's the chewing itself that relieves tension.· The leader occasionally does some-thing totally outrageous to relieve the tension.· So she had to express them, and relieve her tensions, with those stormy little displays of temper.· Perhaps that was what she needed to relieve the tension.
· The above strategies are potentially available for resolving the tension between word order and communicative function.· Such moves, however, have tended to restate rather than resolve the tension between control and autonomy.· By that one gesture and a small shift in expression and tone of voice, he resolved the tension between us.
· She could sense the rising tension in the room, almost as oppressive as the scent of all the flowers.· The chil-dren sensed his tension and gave him a wide berth.· She sensed the tensions we were suffering before we finally parted.· I could sense the tension in the court as neighbours sought to give opinions to each other in noisy whispers.· When he finally got there, when he walked through the town, he sensed a tension amongst those who saw him.· Forester sensed a worm of tension, deep in his belly and fighting to get free.· Blanche sensed the tension in his body, the clenched muscles.· Romanov sensed the sort of tension he only felt in the field.
PHRASES FROM OTHER ENTRIES► you could cut the atmosphere/air/tension with a knife
- Take the walk along the Humber Bridge with the wind nagging the high-tension cables.
- The Kinner field almost qualified; it had two sets of high-tension wires on its eastern perimeter.
WORD FAMILYnountensenesstensionadjectivetenseverbtenseadverbtensely
1nervous feeling [uncountable] a nervous worried feeling that makes it impossible for you to relax: 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.2no 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 arguingpolitical/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.3different influences [countable, uncountable] if there is tension between two things, there is a difference between the needs or influences of each, and that causes problemstension between In business, there’s always a tension between the needs of customers and shareholders.4tightness [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.5force [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.COLLOCATIONS– Meaning 1adjectivesunbearable· 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.verbsreduce/ease/relieve tension· Breathing deeply helps to clear my mind and reduce tension.sense the tension· She could sense the tension in the room.phrasesa 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.COLLOCATIONS– Meaning 2adjectivesracial 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 countriesverbsdefuse 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.phrasesa source of tension· This agreement should remove a major source of tension among America’s allies.