bend

bend

verb

Definition of BEND

1

to cause to turn away from a straight line <she bent the blade of the knife when she got it jammed in the drawer>

Synonyms arch, bow, crook, curve, hook, swerve

Related Words arc, round; incurvate, incurve, inflect, reflect; deflect, divert; entwine, kink, swirl, turn, twine, twist, veer, warp; coil, curl, enroll (also enrol), loop, spiral; dent, dimple; meander, wave, weave, wind; decline, incline, slope

Antonyms straighten, unbend, uncurl

2

to occupy (oneself) diligently or with close attention <bent herself to the task for the rest of the day>

Synonyms address, bend, buckle, devote, give

Related Words readdress, reapply; knuckle down, set (to), settle (down); busy, commit, concern, engage, involve; exert, exhaust, put out, spend, strain, stress, tax, trouble, wear out; carry on, pitch in, plunge (in); grind, hump, hustle, peg (away), plod, plow, plug (away), work

Near Antonyms dally, dawdle, dillydally, fiddle (around), fool around, idle, mess around, monkey (around), play, potter (around), putter (around), trifle

3

to point or turn (something) toward a target or goal <bent all of his efforts toward making his first documentary film>

Synonyms bend, cast, direct, head, hold, level, pinpoint, set, train

Related Words sight; bear, face; concentrate, focus; incline, orient, steer

Near Antonyms avert, curve, deflect, detour, divert, rechannel, shunt, sidetrack

4

to turn away from a straight line or course <the stream bends slightly to the east>

Synonyms arc, arch, bend, bow, crook, fall off, hook, round, sweep, swerve, trend, wheel

Related Words circle, coil, curlicue, curl, loop, spiral; turn, twist, wind; deviate, veer

Antonyms straighten

5

to change so much as to create a wrong impression or alter the meaning of <attorneys bending the facts to put their client in the most favorable light>

Synonyms bend, color, cook, distort, falsify, fudge, misinterpret, misrelate, misrepresent, misstate, pervert, slant, twist, warp

Related Words misdescribe, misspeak, mistranslate; belie, camouflage, disguise, dissemble, gloss (over), mask, veil, whitewash; bowdlerize, censor; complicate, confound, confuse, mistake, mix (up); mystify, obscure; equivocate, fib, lie, palter, prevaricate

Near Antonyms clarify, clear (up), explain, illuminate, illustrate, interpret, spell out; decipher

6

to cause (something) to hold to another <bend a leash to the dog's collar>

Synonyms affix, attach, bend, fix

Related Words adhere, bolt, cinch, clamp, clasp, clench, clinch, clip, glue, hang, harness, hasp, lace, lash, latch, nail, paste, pin, plaster, rivet, screw, shackle, staple, stick, strap, tack, tackle, tie, toggle, yoke; coapt, connect, join, link, unite; reaffix, reattach, refasten, refix, resecure; batten, belay, button, do up

Near Antonyms break up, disconnect, disjoin, disjoint, dissever, dissociate, disunite, divide, divorce, part, separate, sever, split, sunder, uncouple, unlink, unyoke; loose, loosen; unbind, unfix, unlash, untie

Antonyms detach, undo, unfasten, unhook