dent

1 of 5

verb

ˈdent 

dented; denting; dents

transitive verb

1

: to make a dent in

dent a car

2

: to have a weakening effect on

intransitive verb

: to form a dent by sinking inward : become dented

dent

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noun (1)

1

: a depression or hollow made by a blow or by pressure

2

: an appreciable impression or effect often made against resistance

hasn't made a dent in the problem

specifically : a weakening or lessening effect

costs that have made a dent in the budget

dent

3 of 5

noun (2)

: tooth sense 2a

dent

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abbreviation

dental; dentist; dentistry

dent-

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combining form

variants or denti- or dento-

: tooth : teeth

dentiform

Synonyms

Verb

• abate
• de-escalate
• decrease
• deplete
• diminish
• downscale
• downsize
• drop
• dwindle
• ease
• knock down
• lessen
• lower
• reduce

Noun (1)

• cavity
• concavity
• depression
• dint
• hole
• hollow
• indentation
• indenture
• pit
• recess

Examples of dent in a Sentence

Verb

I'm afraid I dented the wall pretty badly when I was hammering in that nail.

Many of the cans were badly dented.

Some types of metal dent more easily than others.

The team's confidence has been dented by a recent series of losses.

Noun (1)

there was a big dent in the car's hood where something had hit it

a little belt-tightening would at least make a small dent in our credit-card debt

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

In 2023 sales were only partially dented by the crisis, which erupted in December, and amounted to over 11 million euros, while last year, preliminary figures to Nov. 30 were reportedly down to 2 million euros. —Martino Carrera, Footwear News, 29 Apr. 2025

Three of the police cruisers, two of which were unmarked, were dented, with a number of their windows broken with traffic cones, police said. —Thomas Tracy, New York Daily News, 4 Apr. 2025

Noun

For starters, alcohol is by far the biggest source of onboard revenue, so cutting off passengers would make a dent in the airline industry's profits. —Christopher Elliott, USA Today, 3 May 2025

But unlike Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, another franchise event play Friedman ushered to an actual Tony win for Best Play in 2018, Stranger Things did not make a dent in that category. —Jackson McHenry, Vulture, 1 May 2025

Word History

Etymology

Verb

Middle English, short for indenten to make dents in, indent

Noun (2)

French, literally, tooth, from Latin dent-, dens

Combining form

Middle English denti-, from Latin, from dent-, dens tooth — more at tooth

First Known Use

Verb

14th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Noun (1)

1565, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun (2)

1703, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing dent

• dent corn
• make/put a dent

Rhymes for dent

• bent
• blent
• cent
• ent
• fent
• lent
• meant
• pent
• rent
• rente
• scent
• sent

Kids Definition

dent

1 of 2 verb

ˈdent 

1

: to make a dent in or on

2

: to become marked by a dent

dent

2 of 2 noun

1

: a notch or hollow made by a blow or by pressure

2

a

: an impression or effect made usually against resistance

that purchase made a big dent in our savings

b

: noticeable progress

made a dent in our pile of work

Medical Definition

dent

abbreviation

dental; dentist; dentistry

Biographical Definition

Dent

biographical name

ˈdent 

Joseph Mal*a*by ˈma-lə-bē  1849–1926 English publisher