tightrope

[ tahyt-rohp ]

noun

1. a rope or wire cable, stretched tight, on which acrobats perform feats of balancing.

verb (used without object)

, tight·roped, tight·rop·ing.

1. to walk, move, or proceed on or as on a tightrope:

   He tightroped through enemy territory.

verb (used with object)

, tight·roped, tight·rop·ing.

1. to make (one's way, course, etc.) on or as on a tightrope.

tightrope

/ ˈtaɪtˌrəʊp /

noun

1. a rope or cable stretched taut above the ground on which acrobats walk or perform balancing feats
2. to be in a difficult situation that demands careful and considered behaviour

Word History and Origins

Origin of tightrope¹

First recorded in 1795–1805; tight + rope

Idioms and Phrases

see walk a tightrope .

Example Sentences

If we are looking for entertainment, which sports should be, keep walking that tightrope and forget the alumni!

From Los Angeles Times

Born in Philadelphia in 1840, Donaldson was a gymnast, ventriloquist, a tightrope performer and – like the Wonderful Wizard himself – a magician.

From Salon

The tightrope that you have to walk, hence the reason we need certain people running our country and not shooting from the hip.

From Los Angeles Times

Without Ohtani, this could come back to Chavez Ravine next weekend on a tightrope.

From Los Angeles Times

But the King, who has been walking this political tightrope for many decades, steered a careful path in Samoa.

From BBC