straff

Meaning

tight, firm, of an object that could also be slack

Frequency

25k
Pronounced as (IPA)
/ʃtʁaf/
Etymology

In summary

From late Middle High German straf, cognate with Dutch straf, with further origin uncertain. However, a semantic connection Proto-Indo-European *(s)ter(h₁)- (“to be stiff; be rigid; exert”) (whence Proto-Germanic *staraz (“stiff”)) has been proposed (DWDS).

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