Tight-Lipped (9) Crossword Clue Answer
Answer: SECRETIVE
The crossword clue Tight-lipped (9) has the answer SECRETIVE. This personality trait clue describes individuals who deliberately withhold information and maintain discretion about personal or sensitive matters, making "secretive" the perfect nine-letter solution that captures this guarded behavioral characteristic accurately.
Understanding the Tight-Lipped
Tight-lipped serves as an idiomatic personality description clue in crossword puzzles. The phrase "tight-lipped" uses body language imagery to describe someone who refuses to share information, keeps secrets, and maintains privacy about personal or confidential matters.
This type of behavioral metaphor clue relies on solvers' knowledge of common expressions and personality terminology, making it accessible to anyone familiar with character descriptions and social behavior patterns.
The enumeration (9) indicates a single nine-letter word, which immediately points toward "SECRETIVE" as the most fitting personality descriptor.
This letter count helps eliminate shorter behavioral terms and guides solvers toward specific adjectives that precisely describe information-withholding tendencies and private personalities.
Related Crossword Terms and Behavioral Variations
Crossword constructors frequently reference secretive behavior using different cluing approaches:
- "Unwilling to share information" - emphasizing the communication resistance aspect
- "Keeping things to oneself" - highlighting the privacy maintenance behavior
- "Guarded in conversation" - focusing on social interaction patterns
- "Close-mouthed about details" - emphasizing information withholding tendencies
Expert Tips for Solving Personality Trait Crossword Clues
Behavioral Vocabulary Building: Develop familiarity with terms describing personality characteristics and social behaviors, as crosswords frequently feature clues about human traits and psychological patterns.
Metaphor Recognition Skills: Learn to identify figurative language that describes personality traits through physical imagery and body language references.
Psychology Knowledge Application: Understanding basic personality psychology helps solvers quickly identify behavioral descriptors and distinguish between different trait categories.
Pattern Memory Development: Nine-letter personality adjectives often describe complex behavioral patterns, and "SECRETIVE" provides an excellent example of how psychological terminology frequently appears in crossword solutions.
Tight-Lipped (9) - 7 Little Words - FAQs
Q: Why is "secretive" the best answer for "tight-lipped"?
A: "Secretive" perfectly captures the essence of being tight-lipped - deliberately withholding information and maintaining privacy about personal or sensitive matters.
Q: Are there other nine-letter words describing reserved behavior?
A: While alternatives like "withdrawn" or "reticent" describe similar traits, "secretive" most specifically captures the information-withholding aspect of being tight-lipped.
Q: How common are personality trait clues in crosswords?
A: Behavioral and personality clues appear frequently because they test vocabulary knowledge while relating to universal human experiences and characteristics.
Q: What difficulty level does this clue represent?
A: This represents an intermediate-level clue, requiring understanding of idiomatic expressions and personality vocabulary without advanced psychological terminology.
