Source : Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)

Stiff \Stiff\, a. [Compar. {Stiffer}; superl. {Stiffest}.] [OE.
   stif, AS. st[=i]f; akin to D. stijf, G. steif, Dan. stiv, Sw.
   styf, Icel. st[=i]fr, Lith. stipti to be stiff; cf. L. stipes
   a post, trunk of a tree, stipare to press, compress. Cf.
   {Costive}, {Stifle}, {Stipulate}, {Stive} to stuff.]
   1. Not easily bent; not flexible or pliant; not limber or
      flaccid; rigid; firm; as, stiff wood, paper, joints.

            [They] rising on stiff pennons, tower The mid
            a["e]rial sky.                        --Milton.

   2. Not liquid or fluid; thick and tenacious; inspissated;
      neither soft nor hard; as, the paste is stiff.

   3. Firm; strong; violent; difficult to oppose; as, a stiff
      gale or breeze.

   4. Not easily subdued; unyielding; stubborn; obstinate;
      pertinacious; as, a stiff adversary.

            It is a shame to stand stiff in a foolish argument.
                                                  --Jer. Taylor.

            A war ensues: the Cretans own their cause, Stiff to
            defend their hospitable laws.         --Dryden.

   5. Not natural and easy; formal; constrained; affected;
      starched; as, stiff behavior; a stiff style.

            The French are open, familiar, and talkative; the
            Italians stiff, ceremonious, and reserved.
                                                  --Addison.

   6. Harsh; disagreeable; severe; hard to bear. [Obs. or
      Colloq.] ``This is stiff news.'' --Shak.

   7. (Naut.) Bearing a press of canvas without careening much;
      as, a stiff vessel; -- opposed to {crank}. --Totten.

   8. Very large, strong, or costly; powerful; as, a stiff
      charge; a stiff price. [Slang]

   {Stiff neck}, a condition of the neck such that the head can
      not be moved without difficulty and pain.

   Syn: Rigid; inflexible; strong; hardly; stubborn; obstinate;
        pertinacious; harsh; formal; constrained; affected;
        starched; rigorous.