straight

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1. Straight is a Middle English past participle of the verb stretch and has many meanings in modern English, primarily 'extending uniformly in the same direction without a curve or bend'. Strait, which has the basic meaning 'tight, narrow', is used as a noun meaning 'a narrow passage of water connecting two seas', in the plural as in dire straits, and in combinations such as strait-laced and straitjacket (straightjacket is also used but the better spelling is strait-).

2. Straight is now the normal form in the phrase the straight and narrow ('the honest course of action'), it being understood in the sense 'honest, morally correct'; the older form strait and narrow, in which strait itself means 'narrow' (thereby producing a hendiadys similar to nice and easy), has largely gone out of use. The morphological issue is somewhat complicated by the existence of straight as a variant of strait; the two words are therefore not completely distinct. For more historical information, see the Old English (up to 1150)D entry for straight (adj.) 3.

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adjective

1. Proceeding or lying in an uninterrupted line or course: direct, straightforward, through. See straight/bent.
2. Having no irregularities, roughness, or indentations: even¹, flat, flush, level, planar, plane¹, smooth. See smooth/rough.
3. Manifesting honesty and directness, especially in speech: candid, direct, downright, forthright, frank, honest, ingenuous, man-to-man, open, plainspoken, straightforward, straight-out, unreserved. Informal straight-from-the-shoulder, straight-shooting. See clear/unclear, show/hide.
4. Conforming to established practice or standards: button-down, conformist, conventional, establishmentarian, orthodox, traditional. Slang square. See usual/unusual.
5. Not diluted or mixed with other substances: full-strength, neat, plain, pure, unblended, undiluted, unmixed. See clean/dirty, strong/weak.

adverb

1. In a direct line: dead, direct, directly, due, right, straightaway. See straight/bent.
2. With precision or absolute conformity: bang, dead, direct, directly, exactly, fair, flush, just, precisely, right, smack¹, square, squarely. Slang smack-dab. See precise/imprecise.

Idioms beginning with straight:
straight face
straight out
straight and narrow, the
straight as an arrow
straighten up
straight from the shoulder
straight goods
straight off
straight talk
straight ticket
straight up

See also (straight) from the horse's mouth; get something straight; give it to (someone straight); go straight; keep a straight face; right (straight) out; set straight; shoot straight.

adj

Definition: aligned; not curved
Antonyms: curved, indirect, twisted, winding, zigzag

adj

Definition: conventional, square
Antonyms: different, unconventional, untraditional

adj

Definition: honest, fair
Antonyms: corrupt, dishonest, evasive, indirect, unfair, unjust

adj

Definition: orderly
Antonyms: disordered, disorderly, disorganized, messy, untidy

adj

Definition: unmixed
Antonyms: diluted, mixed

adv

Definition: honestly
Antonyms: dishonestly, indirectly

adv

Definition: immediately, directly
Antonyms: eventually, later

IN BRIEF: Having the same direction all the way, not crooked, curvy, or wavy.

There is no hope for the aching world except through the narrow and straight path of nonviolence. — Gandhi (1869-1948)

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as in: straight ahead or blunt or heterosexual
sign description: The B-hand moves straight off the nose.

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For a dream to somehow emphasize straightness (as in a straight road) can indicate that the dreamer intends-or needs to-get things straightened out in her or her life. Perhaps a situation or a business deal was underhanded or "crooked."

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adjective
adjective, orig US

1: Law-abiding, not criminal. (1864 —) . Cf. go straight at straight adverb 4.
J. Wainwright Inky was straight.... Ten years ago, Inky had walked away from prison...and, since that day, he hadn't put a foot wrong (1977).

2:
a: Heterosexual. (1941 —) .
San Francisco Examiner A lot of us have 'straight' friends (1965).

b: Not using or under the influence of drugs. (1959 —) .
V. Martin I wish I had some dope. I haven't been straight this long in years (1978).

c: Conventional, respectable. (1960 —) .
New York Times Book Review A fastidiously distant man without the hint of a sex life, straight or otherwise (1975).


3: US Of a drug-user: drugged, high. (1946 —) .
Life Once the addict has had his shot and is 'straight' he may become admirably, though briefly, industrious (1965). adverb

4: to go straight:
a: To reform, to stop being a criminal. (1940 —) .
R. Simons I'm goin' straight. Last time I was done was two years ago, and I ain't been tapped on the shoulder since (1968).

b: To conform to social conventions, spec. by renouncing drugs or homosexuality. (1973 —) .
D. E. Westlake 'He's a fag.'...Well, maybe he's trying to go straight (1977). noun


5: A cigarette, esp. one containing tobacco as opposed to marijuana. (1959 —) .

6: orig US
a: A conventional or respectable person. (1967 —) .
Daily Mirror Straights prefer 'mums and dads' type pop music made by bands like Boomtown Rats, Blondie and, more recently, Police (1980).

b: One who does not take drugs. (1967 —) .

c: A heterosexual. (c.1971 —) .
Gay News It was a campaign shared and supported by a number of gays—even straights (1977).

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1. insufficient angulation of a joint or slope of a bone to give a horse a good conformation, e.g. straight hock, pastern, withers.
2. uncomplicated, e.g. a straight radiograph; one taken before the administration of contrast reagent so that any pre-existing opacities can be identified. Called also scout radiography.

• distal s. tubule — last segment of the nephron loop.
• proximal s. tubule — first segment of the nephron loop.

For a list of words related to straight, see:

• Card Terms
• Proper, Courteous, Refined, or Puritanical
• Sexuality and Libido - straight: (adj) Informal. heterosexual
• Dimensions and Directions - straight: (adj) moving or extending continuously in one direction without turning
• Paraphernalia and Behavior - straight: (adj) Informal. not using illicit drugs
• Users and Abusers - straight: Slang. person not using drugs

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See words rhyming with "straight."

  See crossword solutions for the clue Straight.

This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)

Dansk (Danish)
adj. - lige, klar, ret, rank, ærlig, hæderlig, ligefrem, uden omsvøb, konventionel, heteroseksuel, ortodoks, ublandet
adv. - lige, klar, ret, rank, ærlig, hæderlig, ligefrem, konventionel
n. - god opførsel, lige linje, heteroseksuel person, en hånd med fem kort på stribe

idioms:

• get something straight    få noget på det rene, blive enige
• go straight    holde sig indenfor lovens rammer
• go straight to    gå lige til
• keep straight    holde det uden omsvøb
• on the straight and narrow    på den slagne vej, følge reglerne
• put straight    bringe i orden
• straight a's    højeste karakterer, mønsterelev
• straight angle    lige vinkel, retvinklet
• straight as a die    ligetil
• straight away    lige med det samme, straks
• straight fight    ærlig kamp
• straight from the shoulder    lige fra leveren, lige ud, sandfærdig
• straight off    med det samme, straks
• straight razor    gammeldags barberskraber
• straight to hand    lige ved hånden

Nederlands (Dutch)
recht, direct, rechtlijnig, eerlijk, op rij, onomwonden, liniaal, 5 kaarten op rij in poker iets goed begrijpen

Français (French)
adj. - droit, à dossier droit, raide (des cheveux), bien droit, bien mis, en ordre, clair, compris, honnête, loyal, sûr, net, simple (un choix), catégorique, sec, sans eau (whisky), consécutif, (Théât) classique, quitte, conventionnel, qui ne se drogue pas, hétéro
adv. - droit, juste (un tir), convenablement, tout raide, tout droit, en plein dans, directement, tout de suite, carrément, sans ambages, tout net, (fig) franc jeu, (Théât) de manière classique, sec, sans eau
n. - (Sport) ligne droite, suite (jeux), hétéro (fam)

idioms:

• get something straight    (lit, fig) mettre (qch) en ordre
• go straight    aller directement, se ranger
• go straight to    aller directement au
• keep straight    rester sur le droit chemin, continuer correctement
• on the straight and narrow    (suivre) le droit chemin
• put straight    mettre (qch) bien droit, ajuster
• straight A's    (École) (avoir) des A dans toutes les matières
• straight angle    angle plat
• straight as a die    droit comme une matrice, droit comme un manche à balai
• straight away    tout de suite
• straight fight    (Pol) élection à deux candidats
• straight from the shoulder    carrément
• straight life insurance    assurance-vie
• straight off    immédiatement
• straight out    catégorique, carrément, sans ambages
• straight razor    fine lame

Deutsch (German)
adv. - gerade, direkt, offen
adj. - gerade, aufrichtig, aufrecht, ausgestreckt, fortlaufend, konventionell, (Slang) hetero
n. - Gerade, konventionelle Person, Hetero

idioms:

• get something straight    etwas genau od. richtig verstehen
• go straight    (fig) ein bürgerliches Leben führen
• go straight to    sofort zu etwas od. jmdm. gehen
• keep straight    sich richtig benehmen
• on the straight and narrow    auf dem Pfad der Tugend
• put straight    richtigstellen
• straight A's    die beste Note erreichen
• straight angle    gestreckter Winkel (180 Grad)
• straight as a die    schnurgerade, grundehrlich
• straight away    sofort
• straight fight    direkter Kampf zwischen zwei Kandidaten
• straight from the shoulder    unverblümt
• straight life insurance    Versicherungspolice, die eine bestimmte Geldsumme beim Sterben des Inhabers zahlt
• straight off    schlankweg
• straight out    geradebiegen, geradeziehen, glätten, begradigen, klären, aus der Welt schaffen, in Ordnung bringen, berichtigen
• straight razor    Rasiermesser

Ελληνική (Greek)
adv. - κατευθείαν, απευθείας, ανοιχτά, απροκάλυπτα, μονοκοπανιά(ς), αμέσως
adj. - ίσιος, ευθύς, επίπεδος, ομαλός, ισόπεδος, συνεχής, διαδοχικός, απανωτός, ορθός, σωστός, απερίφραστος, έντιμος, συγυρισμένος, νοικοκυρεμένος, (για ποτό) ανέρωτος, φυσιολογικών σεξουαλικών σχέσεων
n. - ευθεία γραμμή, (στο πόκερ κ.λπ.) κέντα, συντηρητικός αστός, ετεροφυλόφιλος

idioms:

• get something straight    ξεκαθαρίζω κάτι
• go straight    επιστρέφω στη νομιμότητα, διορθώνομαι, συμμαζεύομαι
• go straight to    πηγαίνω κατευθείαν σε
• keep straight    πηγαίνω ευθεία
• on the straight and narrow    στην οδό της αρετής
• put straight    ξεκαθαρίζω
• straight a's    όλο άριστα
• straight angle    γωνία 180 μοιρών
• straight as a die    (καθομ.) τιμιότατος, μπεσαλής
• straight away    αμέσως, παρευθύς
• straight fight    (Βρετ., καθομ.) εκλογική μονομαχία
• straight from the shoulder    στα ίσα, απερίφραστα
• straight off    (καθομ.) αμέσως, μονομιάς
• straight razor    ξυράφι με λαβή
• straight to hand    χέρι με χέρι

Italiano (Italian)
immediatamente, francamente, direttamente, in linea retta, sincero

idioms:

• get something straight    metterselo bene in testa
• go straight (to)    rigare diritto
• keep straight    stare sulla retta via
• on the straight and narrow    sulla retta via
• put straight    correggere
• straight a's    la media del dieci
• straight angle    angolo retto
• straight away    immediatamente
• straight fight    competizione diretta
• straight from the shoulder    chiaro e tondo
• straight off    senza esitazione
• straight razor    rasoio a mano libera

Português (Portuguese)
adv. - em linha reta, diretamente, puro
adj. - direito, franco, ininterrupto, simples, reto, liso

idioms:

• get something straight    esclarecer algo
• go straight (to)    ir direto para
• keep straight    viver honestamente
• on the straight and narrow    honesto
• put straight    arranjar
• straight a's    ter apenas as melhores notas
• straight angle    ângulo reto
• straight away    imediatamente
• straight fight    competir com
• straight from the shoulder    expressar-se sem rodeios, sem evitar desagrado
• straight off    logo
• straight razor    barbeador de lâminas paralelas
• straight to hand    ao alcance das mãos

Русский (Russian)
прямизна, прямая линия, финишная прямая, честность, нормальный человек (не гомосексуалист, не наркоман), прямой, не отклоняющийся от курса, правильный, находящийся в порядке, искренний, верный, идущий по порядку, прямо, непосредственно, правильно, точно, упорядоченно, честно, объективно, здраво

idioms:

• get something straight    уточнить, внести ясность
• go straight (to)    начать вести честный, добропорядочный образ жизни, порвать с преступным прошлым
• keep straight    заставить кого-л. вести себя подобающим образом, регулярно информировать кого-л.
• on the straight and narrow    на стезю добродетели
• put straight    привести в порядок
• straight a's    лучшие ученики
• straight angle    прямой угол
• straight away    немедленно, сразу
• straight fight    поединок, борьба между двумя кандидатами или двумя партиями
• straight from the shoulder    нанесенный наотмашь, сплеча (об ударе), прямой, откровенный, хлесткий
• straight off    сразу, не колеблясь, не обдумав
• straight razor    опасная бритва
• straight to hand    из рук в руки, под рукой

Español (Spanish)
adj. - directo, en línea recta, derecho, recto, honrado, sincero, línea recta, erguido, tieso, lacio (el cabello), seguido, no interrumpido, correcto, exacto, serio, severo, riguroso, acérrimo, en orden, arreglado, puro, sin mezcla
adv. - inmediatamente, rotundamente, sin ambages, en línea recta, rectamente, directamente, continuamente, erguidamente, correctamente, honradamente, sinceramente, francamente, sin demora, sin vacilar
n. - recta, plano, escalera (en el póquer)

idioms:

• get something straight    entender bien algo, aclararse
• go straight    enderezarse, llevar una vida recta después de haber delinquido
• go straight to    ir directamente (a), seguir directamente con
• keep straight    seguir derecho, seguir recto
• on the straight and narrow    ir por el buen camino
• put straight    poner en el buen camino, desengañar, corregir, curar, ordenar, arreglar, poner bien
• straight A's    muy buena calificación
• straight angle    ángulo recto
• straight as a die    más derecho que una vela, de una perfecta honradez
• straight away    en seguida, inmediatamente
• straight fight    campaña electoral de dos candidatos
• straight from the shoulder    desde el hombro
• straight life insurance    seguro de vida de monto fijo
• straight off    inmediatamente, de un tirón, sin interrupción
• straight out    sin dudar
• straight razor    navaja

Svenska (Swedish)
adv. - rakt, rätt, mitt, tvärs, riktigt, korrekt, direkt
adj. - rak, stram, rät, spikrak, i ordning, i följd, uppriktig, heterosexuell, rättskaffensgenomgående, realistisk (teat.)
n. - rät linje, raksträcka, stege (bridge)

中文（简体）(Chinese (Simplified))
直的, 连续的, 正直的, 直接地, 不断地, 立即, 直线, 直

idioms:

• get something straight    搞懂, 事情弄清楚
• go straight    笔直走, 正直做人
• go straight to    直到...去
• keep straight    弄清楚
• on the straight and narrow    奉公守法, 循规蹈矩
• put straight    弄好
• straight a's    成绩全优
• straight angle    平角
• straight as a die    绝对诚实
• straight away    马上
• straight fight    一对一的两人竞选
• straight from the shoulder    狠狠地, 直截了当地, 一针见血地
• straight off    立即, 马上
• straight razor    刮胡刀

中文（繁體）(Chinese (Traditional))
adj. - 直的, 連續的, 正直的
adv. - 直接地, 不斷地, 立即
n. - 直線, 直

idioms:

• get something straight    搞懂, 事情弄清楚
• go straight    筆直走, 正直做人
• go straight to    直到...去
• keep straight    弄清楚
• on the straight and narrow    奉公守法, 循規蹈矩
• put straight    弄好
• straight a's    成績全優
• straight angle    平角
• straight as a die    絕對誠實
• straight away    馬上
• straight fight    一對一的兩人競選
• straight from the shoulder    狠狠地, 直截了當地, 一針見血地
• straight off    立即, 馬上
• straight razor    刮鬍刀

한국어 (Korean)
adj. - 곧은, 수직의, 솔직한
adv. - 일직선으로, 똑바로 서서, 바르게
n. - 곧음, 일직선, 보수적인 행동

idioms:

• get something straight    이해하다, 동감하다
• go straight    성실히 살다, 갱생하다
• go straight to    똑바로 가다, 바르게 가다
• keep straight    단정히 하다, 정직하게 하다, 정조를 지키다
• put straight    사태의 실상을 전하다

日本語 (Japanese)
adj. - 真っすぐな, 一直線の, 直立した, 傾いていない, 整頓した, 間違いなく, まじめな, 率直な, 水で割らない, 連続した
n. - 一直線, 直線部分, ストレート
adv. - 真っすぐに, 直立して, 直接に, 寄り道せずに, 率直に, 正直に, まっとうに, 続いて

idioms:

• go straight (to)    真っ直ぐ行く, まともにやって行く
• on the straight and narrow    品行方正な
• put straight    整頓する
• straight a's    オールA
• straight angle    平角
• straight as a die    真正直な
• straight away    すぐに
• straight fight    全力を傾ける
• straight from the shoulder    肩からまっすぐに, 率直に
• straight off    率直に
• straight razor    西洋かみそり
• straight to hand    直に

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(ظرف) باستقامه, مباشرة, علنا, بأمانه (صفه) مستقيم, صحيح, منصف, عادل (الاسم) ميدان السباق المنبسط, شخص غير شاذ جنسيا يفهم أمر ما‏

עברית (Hebrew)
adj. - ‮ישר, מסודר, זקוף, ניצב, הוגן, כן, גלוי, טהור, הטרוסקסואלי, חלק (שיער), לא מתרחב (בגד), חוזר למוטב (עבריין)‬
adv. - ‮ישר, היישר, ישירות, מיד, ללא דיחוי, גלויות‬
n. - ‮רצף (בקלפים), מסלול, קטע הסיום (במסלול), הצד הרציני לעומת הקומי בהצגה, ראייה תקינה‬

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