21. And we need to do it quickly because businesses are on tenterhooks about whether to stay or leave. 22. But thousands of others with big stakes are also on tenterhooks : USAir customers with frequent-flier accounts. 23. The hook, a fearsome-looking steel gadget called a tenterhook , was adapted from the linen trade. 24. So why do we say we're " on tenterhooks " when we're nervous? 25. Grozny has been a ruin so long that life on tenterhooks has become normal, supplanting whatever existed before. 26. He blames sloppiness and " a not surprising ignorance " of tenterhooks for the rising tide of tenders. 27. Ambrose exploited a slight bounce on the wicket and bowled a tight length, keeping the Zimbabwean batsmen on tenterhook . 28. But the unions have discovered that they can exert pressure just by keeping Metro-North and its riders on tenterhooks . 29. The families, he said, were kept on tenterhooks that more riots may break out in the next few days. 30. It had nothing to do with his contract status; he still is on that tenterhook known as a 10-day.
