Bend Definition

bĕnd
bending, bends, bent
verb
bending, bends, bent
To cause to assume a curved or angular shape.
Bend a piece of iron into a horseshoe.
American Heritage
To cause tension in (a bow, etc.), as by drawing with a string.
Webster's New World
To turn or be turned from a straight line or from some direction or position.
Webster's New World
To bring (a bow, for example) into a state of tension by drawing on a string or line.
American Heritage
To force (an object) into a curved or crooked form, or (back) to its original form, by turning, pulling, pressing, etc.
Webster's New World
noun
bends
The act or fact of bending.
American Heritage
A bending or being bent.
Webster's New World
The state of being bent.
American Heritage
A bent or curving part, as of a river.
Webster's New World
Something bent.
A bend in the road.
American Heritage
Antonyms:
idiom
around the bend
  • Mentally deranged; crazy.
American Heritage
bend (one's) elbow
  • To drink alcoholic beverages.
American Heritage
bend out of shape
  • To annoy or anger.
American Heritage
bend
  • To make an effort greater than is required.
American Heritage
bend (someone's) ear
  • To talk to at length, usually excessively.
American Heritage

Other Word Forms of Bend

Noun

Singular:
bend
Plural:
bends

Idioms, Phrasal Verbs Related to Bend

Origin of Bend

  • From Middle English benden, from Old English bendan (“to bind or bend (a bow), fetter, restrain”), from Proto-Germanic *bandijaną (“to bend”), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰendʰ- (“to bind, tie”). Cognate with Middle High German benden (“to fetter”), Danish bænde (“to bend”), Norwegian bende (“to bend”), Faroese benda (“to bend, inflect”), Icelandic benda (“to bend”). More at band.

    From Wiktionary

  • Middle English from Old English bend band, and from Old French bende, bande band (of Germanic origin bhendh- in Indo-European roots)

    From American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition

  • Middle English benden from Old English bendan bhendh- in Indo-European roots

    From American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition

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