Stiff; precise; rigid.

A widely diffused vegetable substance found especially in seeds, bulbs, and tubers, and extracted (as from potatoes, corn, rice, etc.) as a white, glistening, granular or powdery substance, without taste or smell, and giving a very peculiar creaking sound when rubbed between the fingers. It is used as a food, in the production of commercial grape sugar, for stiffening linen in laundries, in making paste, etc.

Fig.: A stiff, formal manner; formality.

To stiffen with starch.

a material used in the papermaking process, both at the wet end and in the coating to improve the characteristics of the paper

Material used as a sizing agent for paper. Usually made from corn.

A sizing agent added to the paper surface to increase resistance to water or ink, to eliminate abrasiveness, and to improve printing properties and bonding strength. AG: Strong, heavy paper calendered to a smooth hard finish.