noun

stiff

A dead person's body.

The detective calls the unidentified body in the alley a stiff.

Etymology

The adjective for rigidity became slang for a corpse. The name refers to the stiffening associated with death.

More examples

  • They found a stiff in the abandoned warehouse.
  • The two stiffs were taken to the morgue.
  • Please don't call him a stiff; he was my brother.

Forms

stiff · stiffs

Similar words

corpse
A direct term without the slang tone of stiff.
body
A neutral term that can also refer to living people.
cadaver
Usually refers to a body used for medical study.