[f. TENSE a.; perh. at first in pa. pple. tensed, repr. L. tensus stretched, strained.] trans. To make tense; to stretch tight. So Tensed ppl. a., stretched tight, tense.
1676. H. More, Remarks, 141. In his supposed tensed and rarefied bodies. Ibid., 156. The contraction or restitution of the tensed matter.
1884. Mind, Jan., 109. A maximal effort of tensing the extensor instead of the flexor muscles.
1921. Sarah Comstock, The Daughter of Helen Kent, xx. 359. Helen had drawn her hands to fists, tensed her lips, and her eyes had brightened with resolve.
