2. To inspissate; to make more thick or viscous; as, to stiffen paste.
3. To make torpid; to benumb.
STIFFEN
Stiff"en, v. i.
Defn: To become stiff or stiffer, in any sense of the adjective.
Like bristles rose my stiffening hair. Dryden.
The tender soil then stiffening by degrees. Dryden.
Some souls we see, Grow hard and stiffen with adversity. Dryden.
STIFFENER
Stiff"en*er, n.
Defn: One who, or that which, stiffens anything, as a piece of stiff cloth in a cravat.
STIFFENING
Stiff"en*ing, n.
1. Act or process of making stiff.
2. Something used to make anything stiff. Stiffening order (Com.), a permission granted by the customs department to take cargo or ballast on board before the old cargo is out, in order to steady the ship.
STIFF-HEARTED
Stiff"-heart`ed, a. Etym: [Stiff + heart.]