tweak

== English == === Etymology === From Middle English twikken, from Old English twiccian (“to pluck”), from Proto-West Germanic *twekkōn (“to fasten; clamp; pinch”). Related to twitch. The drug-related sense may be a blend of twitch and freak. === Pronunciation === IPA(key): /twiːk/ Rhymes: -iːk === Verb === tweak (third-person singular simple present tweaks, present participle tweaking, simple past and past participle tweaked) (transitive) To pinch and pull with a sudden jerk and twist; to twitch. (transitive, informal) To adjust slightly; to fine-tune. (transitive) To tease, to annoy; to get under the skin of (someone, typically so as to irritate them, or by extension to enamor, frighten, etc). 1995, Alida Brill, Feminist Press, A Rising Public Voice: Women in Politics Worldwide, Feminist Press at CUNY (→ISBN), page 177: Oh, he loved to tweak people and say things like "Hiya sweetums" to me because that was not exactly de rigueur in front of a bunch of strong feminists. He had this enormous sense of humor. I never knew what he was going to say. (intransitive, US, slang) To abuse methamphetamines, especially crystal meth. (intransitive, US, slang) To exhibit extreme nervousness, evasiveness when confronted by authorities, compulsiveness, erratic motion, excitability, etc, due to or mimicking the symptoms of methamphetamine abuse. (intransitive, slang, by extension) To be extremely confused; to have no clue what is happening. Synonym: (slang) trip (military, weaponry, uncommon) From a catapult, to strike a target with a missile. ==== Derived terms ==== (drug abuser): tweaker (US) (drug abuse): tweaking tweakery tweak on tweak out ==== Translations ==== === Noun === tweak (plural tweaks) A sharp pinch or jerk; a twist or twitch. A slight adjustment or modification. Trouble; distress; tweag. (obsolete, slang) A prostitute. (slang) Methamphetamine. (slang) A single inhalation of cocaine. (cryptography) An additional input to a block cipher, used in conjunction with the key to select the permutation computed by the cipher. ==== Derived terms ==== ==== Translations ==== === References === “tweak” in Webster’s Seventh New Collegiate Dictionary: Based on Webster’s Third New International Dictionary, 7th edition, Springfield, Mass.: G[eorge] & C[harles] Merriam, 1963 (1967 printing), →OCLC.