Meaning & use
straight
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Meanings
adjectivecomparable
Extending in one direction without bending, curving, or turning.
Grammar: Can be comparative ('straighter') and superlative ('straightest').
Patterns
- a straight line
- straight hair
- be straight
Draw a straight line from A to B.
She has long, straight hair.
The road ahead is straight for two miles.
adjectivenot comparable
Continuing without interruption; happening one after another.
Grammar: Used before a noun, often with 'five', 'three', etc.: 'five straight wins'.
Patterns
- five straight wins
- three straight days
The team celebrated five straight victories.
It rained for three straight days.
adjectivecomparable
Honest and direct; not trying to deceive.
Grammar: Can be comparative ('straighter') but rare; often used in 'be straight with someone'.
Patterns
- be straight with someone
- a straight answer
I want a straight answer: did you take the money?
She was straight with me about the risks.
adjectivenot comparable
Heterosexual; attracted to people of the opposite sex.
Grammar: Usually used predicatively or before a noun; not comparative.
Patterns
- be straight
- a straight man
He told his friends he was straight.
The survey asked both straight and gay respondents.
Word forms
| comparative | straighter |
|---|---|
| superlative | straightest |
Common combinations
- straight line
- Use a ruler to draw a straight line.
- straight ahead
- The station is straight ahead.
- straight answer
- Please give me a straight answer.
- straight hair
- Her straight hair reaches her waist.
- five straight wins
- The team has five straight wins this season.
Synonyms and how they differ
- direct
- Direct often means without stopping or changing direction; straight is more about physical form or honesty.
- honest
- Honest means truthful in general; straight suggests being direct and not evasive in a particular situation.
- heterosexual
- Heterosexual is the formal, technical term; straight is the common everyday word.
Opposites
Word family
- straighten verb
- To make or become straight.
- straightness noun
- The quality of being straight.
- straightforward adjective
- Easy to understand or do; honest and direct.
Commonly confused: straight or strait?
straight vs strait
A strait is a narrow passage of water; straight means not bent. They sound the same but have different meanings.
Practice
Choose the correct word: 'The road goes ___ for ten miles before it curves.'
Choose one answer.
'Straight' is the adjective/adverb meaning without bending, fitting 'goes straight'. 'Strait' is a narrow water passage; 'straightly' is not used in this sense; 'straighten' is a verb meaning to make straight.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “straight”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.