Definition: taut

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Source: WordNet (r) 1.7 

taut
     adj 1: pulled or drawn tight; "taut sails"; "a tight drumhead"; "a
            tight rope" [syn: tight]
     2: subjected to great tension; stretched tight; "the skin of
        his face looked drawn and tight"; "her nerves were taut as
        the strings of a bow" [syn: drawn]

Source: Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) 

Taut \Taut\, a. [Dan. t[ae]t; akin to E. tight. See Tight.]
   1. (Naut.) Tight; stretched; not slack; -- said esp. of a
      rope that is tightly strained.

   2. Snug; close; firm; secure.

   Taut hand (Naut.), a sailor's term for an officer who is
      severe in discipline.