From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishstraightstraight1 /streɪt/ ●●● S1 W2 adverb 1 in a straight lineSTRAIGHT in a line or direction that is not curved or bentstraight ahead/at/down/in front of etc The book is on the table straight in front of you. She was looking straight at me. Terry was so tired he couldn’t walk straight. He was sitting with his legs stretched straight out in front of him.2 position in a level or correct position Sit up straight, don’t slouch.3 immediatelyIMMEDIATELY immediately, without delay, or without doing anything else firststraight to/up/down/back etc I went straight up to bed. Go straight home and tell your mother.straight after I’ve got a meeting straight after lunch. I think I should get straight to the point.4 one after the otherSERIES happening one after the other in a series He’s been without sleep now for three days straight.5 honestHONEST (also straight out) if you say or ask something straight, you say it in an honest direct way, without trying to hide your meaning I just told him straight that I wouldn’t do it. She came straight out with it and said she was leaving. I hope, for your sake, you’re playing it straight (=being honest). I told him straight to his face (=speaking directly to him) what I thought of him. 6 → think/see straight7 → straight away8 → go straight9 → straight up10 → straight from the shoulder
Examples from the Corpus
straight• Harry was so drunk he couldn't see straight.• It's rained for eight days straight.• Terry was so drunk he couldn't walk straight.• His gaze appeared to be fixed straight ahead, and he seemed utterly at peace with himself and his surroundings.• If you look straight ahead, you'll see the church in the distance.• Serve immediately straight from the soufflé dish.• Course two hundred ten degrees straight in for the central promontory.• Jane was walking purposefully along the hall, straight towards us.• When at last it came, he carried it straight up to his bedroom and hid it under the wardrobe.straight ahead/at/down/in front of etc• On the street straight in front of the hotel.straight to/up/down/back etc• The Well of Loneliness: Absinthe, straight up.• Perhaps he was going to punch it straight back at the batsman.• Switching on leads you straight to Channel 2.• It is down, straight down, into the rank and file, and there is nothing to break the fall.• About 25 of us arrived and went straight to the beer tent, where we spent quite some time.• They know that we send them straight to the cells at An Dap now, nomatterhow badly they injure themselves.• Then on Monday the chauffeur drove them straight to the theatre for the show. came straight out with it• They came straight out with it: they wanted to supply all the spirits for the club - at very reasonable prices.ldoce_320_cstraightstraight2 ●●● S2 W3 adjective (comparative straighter, superlative straightest) 1 not bending or curvingSTRAIGHT something that is straight does not bend or curve a long, straight road Try to keep your legs straight. Always lift with a straight back. her long, straight black hair They sat down in a straight line. The road was dead straight (=completely straight).2 level/uprightVERTICAL level or upright, and not leaning to one side Is my tie straight? straight white teeth3 truthfulHONEST honest and truthful I’d like a straight answer please. Just give me a straight yes or no. I think it’s time for some straight talk now.be straight with somebody I wish you’d just be straight with me.► see thesaurus at honest4 one after another [only before noun]SERIES happening immediately one after another in a series The team now has an amazing record of 43 straight wins.5 tidy [not before noun]TIDY a room that is straight is clean and tidy and everything is in its proper place It took me two hours to get the house straight. 6 → get something straight7 → set/put somebody straight8 → straight face9 sexual choice informalHOMOSEXUAL someone who is straight is attracted to people of the opposite sex SYN heterosexual10 alcoholic drinkDFD a straight alcoholic drink has no water or any other drink added to it a straight whisky11 not owing money [not before noun]OWE# spoken if two people are straight, they no longer owe money to each other If you give me £10, then we’re straight.12 choice/exchangeCHOOSE [only before noun] a straight choice or exchange is between only two possible choices or things It was a straight choice between my career or my family. We did a straight swap – one of my cards for one of his.13 fight/competition [only before noun] a straight fight or competition is between only two people The election is now a straight fight between Labour and the Conservatives. 14 normal informalBORING someone who is straight behaves in a way that is accepted as normal by many people but which you think is boring15 not funny a straight actor or character does not try to make people laugh16 only one type completely one particular type of something It’s not a straight historical novel.17 drugs informalDRUG someone who is straight does not take illegal drugs → set/put the record straight at record1Examples from the Corpus
straight• I can't stand it when your friends come to visit - they're so straight.• I like my vodka straight.• Paul's quite nice but he's awfully straight.• Her hair is blonde and very straight.• Here's your dollar back - now we're straight.• I've asked several people what happened, but no one will give me a straight answer.• Anne loved Rome, with its open spaces and long straight avenues.• She's straight but she's got a lot of lesbian friends.• The road ran dead straight for 50 miles across the desert.• He will miss his second straight game when the Kings play Edmonton tonight at the Forum.• Johnston has played in 149 straight games and started in 90 of the last 91.• The New York Rangers have won seven straight games.• Tony Blair stated that he was 'a pretty straight kind of guy'.• She realized that she wasn't walking in a straight line and was unsteady on her feet.• It is a closely-packed map with hardly a straight line or an empty space in it.• All the posts stood erect and unblemished in a dead straight line.• a straight line• First, draw two straight lines across the page using a ruler.• Straight men often feel nervous in the company of gays.• How difficult, they reasoned, could a straight quarter-mile be compared to driving 500 miles on an oval track?• The crash occurred on a straight section of the highway.• How about a straight swap, my "U2" album for this one?• straight teeth• I don't care what you've done, Mike - just be straight with me.• Did you do it? Just give me a straight yes or no.in a straight line• Because it was attached to the straw and the string, it went in a straight line.• The snow had come down the mountain and now met us on the road, sailing toward us in straight lines.• They are like crayfish, unable to walk in a straight line.• They followed rivers for convenience, then struck out in a straight line, bisecting mountain ranges, cutting watersheds in half.• Photographs showed it to consist of twenty or more radiant pieces in a straight line, embedded inside an extensive bright cloud.• He blasted it and it went in a straight line from his foot to the top right hand corner.• So they must have thought they were still going in a straight line heading for the bullseye.• All objects have a propensity to move in straight lines, upwards or downwards, towards their natural place.straight answer• Now that was a straight answer.• Then I want a straight answer.• You just have to give a straight answer.• Tommy gave straight answers and expected them in return.• I also want a straight answer on Charlie Northrup.• Designed to provide a straight answer to a straight question as fast as possible.get ... straight• And Sandy helped me decide that I was gon na get it straight.• I'd better go and get it straight.• Let me see if I get this straight.• We got attention straight away, we got some kind of profile very easily.• Mr Cable should get his facts straight before he makes false allegations.• He tried to get his mind straight, hold his bearings from veering off further.• He never quite got anything straight or complete in his mind.• Let's get straight to the jelly.straight choice• Jack had been faced with a straight choice and he had chosen his career.• Given a straight choice, I'd rather sit by a slug.straightstraight3 noun 1 [singular] especially British EnglishDS the straight part of a racetrack2 → the straight and narrow3 [countable] informalHOMOSEXUAL# someone who is attracted to people of the opposite sex OPP gayExamples from the Corpus
straight• Wittman wrote: Much of our sexuality has been perverted through mimicry of straights, and warped from self-hatred.From Longman Business Dictionarystraightstraight /streɪt/ adjective honest and truthfulbe/play straight with somebodyOn this question, neither candidate has played straight with the voters.Origin straight2 (1300-1400) From an old past participle of stretch 