to defuse tension
1tension — noun 1 inability to relax ADJECTIVE ▪ inner ▪ emotional, nervous, sexual ▪ He suffers from nervous tension. ▪ muscle, muscular …
2defuse — verb (T) 1 to improve a difficult or dangerous situation, for example by making people less angry or by dealing with the causes of a problem: We believe that greater economic stability might defuse the current crisis. | defuse tension/anger/fears …
3defuse — de|fuse [ˌdi:ˈfju:z] v [T] 1.) to improve a difficult or dangerous situation, for example by making people less angry or by dealing with the causes of a problem defuse a situation/crisis/row etc ▪ Beth s quiet voice helped to defuse the situation …
4defuse — ► VERB 1) remove the fuse from (an explosive device) in order to prevent it from exploding. 2) reduce the danger or tension in (a difficult situation). USAGE The verbs defuse and diffuse have different meanings but are often confused. Defuse… …
5defuse — defuse, diffuse It is surprising how often diffuse (correctly = to disperse) is used for defuse in its figurative meaning ‘to remove tension or potential danger from (a crisis, etc.)’. Examples of this wrong use are: • An early cut in base rates …
6tension */*/*/ — UK [ˈtenʃ(ə)n] / US noun Word forms tension : singular tension plural tensions 1) a) [uncountable] the feeling of being so nervous or worried that you cannot relax ease the tension: I tried to ease the tension (= make it less strong) with a joke …
7defuse — verb Defuse is used with these nouns as the object: ↑bomb, ↑crisis, ↑situation, ↑tension …
8defuse — verb 1》 remove the fuse from (an explosive device) in order to prevent it from exploding. 2》 reduce the danger or tension in (a difficult situation) …
9defuse — v.tr. 1 remove the fuse from (an explosive device). 2 reduce the tension or potential danger in (a crisis, difficulty, etc.) …
10Headache, tension — A headache caused by contracting of the muscles in the back of the neck, on the scalp, and sometimes in the jaw. Tension headaches are usually related to stress. Treatment is via stress reduction, massage, and analgesic medication, such as… …