tight as a tick
The idiom "tight as a tick" is primarily used in informal American English, particularly in the Southern United States, and has multiple meanings based on different contexts.
🇺🇸 US Voice:
🇬🇧 UK Voice:
Definition
B2Social Situations
(informal, slang)Heavily intoxicated or drunk.
Example
- After the party, he was tight as a tick and couldn't walk straight.
B2Descriptive
(informal)Fully inflated or swollen, nearly to the point of bursting.
Example
- The balloon was tight as a tick, ready to pop at any moment.
B2Financial
(informal, slang)Extremely frugal or unwilling to spend money.
Example
- He's tight as a tick when it comes to lending money.
Similar
Terms that have similar or relatively close meanings to "tight as a tick":
tight as a drumtick overtight squeezetick onhigh and tighthard as nailstighten uptight looptough as nailstight spothang tightsolid as a rocktick offhold tighttight five