bend

1 of 3

verb

ˈbend 

bent ˈbent  ; bending

transitive verb

1

: to constrain or strain to tension by curving

bend a bow

2

a

: to turn or force from straight or even to curved or angular

bend a pipe

b

: to force from a proper shape

Her bicycle's back wheel got bent in the crash.

c

: to force back to an original straight or even condition

bend the wire flat

3

: fasten

bend a sail to its yard

4

a

: to cause to turn from a straight course : deflect

bend a ray of light with a mirror

b

: to guide or turn toward : direct

… bends his rapid steps in the direction of the headquarters …

—O. Henry

c

: incline, dispose

bending their minds to the Buddhist concept of eternity

—Christopher Rand

d

: to adapt to one's purpose : distort

bend the rules

5

: to direct strenuously or with interest : apply

bent himself to the task

6

: to make submissive : subdue

refusing to be bent

intransitive verb

1

: to curve out of a straight line or position

The road bends to the left.

tree limbs bending under the weight of the snow

bent down to pick up a piece of paper

bending double with pain

specifically : to incline the body in token of submission

bend to the queen

2

: to apply oneself vigorously

bending to their work

3

: incline, tend

She bends to the Left politically.

4

: compromise sense 2

refusing to bend under pressure to change

bending to the will of wealthy supporters

bendable

ˈben-də-bəl 

adjective

bend

2 of 3

noun (1)

plural bends

1

: the act or process of bending

doing knee bends

: the state of being bent

the graceful bends of Gothic windows

2

: something that is bent: such as

a

: a curved part of a path (as of a stream or road)

Their house is down the road, just past the bend.

b

nautical : wale entry 1 sense 2

—usually used in plural

see also the bends

bend

3 of 3

noun (2)

1

heraldry : a diagonal band that runs from the dexter chief (see chief entry 3 sense 1) to the sinister base (see base entry 1 sense 8) on a heraldic shield compare bend sinister

2

[Middle English, band, from Old English bend fetter — more at band] : a knot by which one rope is fastened to another or to some object

Phrases

bend one's ear

: to talk to someone at length

bend over backward or bend over backwards

: to make extreme efforts

had to bend over backward to get these tickets

around the bend or British round the bend

: mentally unsound

appears to have gone around the bend

Synonyms

Verb

• arch
• bow
• crook
• curve
• hook
• swerve

Noun (1)

• angle
• arc
• arch
• bow
• crook
• curvature
• curve
• inflection
• turn
• wind

Examples of bend in a Sentence

Verb

bend a wire into a circle

bend the cable around a wheel

He bent the bow and shot an arrow from it.

His glasses got bent when he dropped them.

The trees were bending in the wind.

The branch will bend before it breaks.

She bent down to pick up a piece of paper and then she straightened up again.

He bent back to look up at the ceiling.

bend to the left and then bend to the right

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

Try teal spirals or striped acid yellow tapers in silver candleholders topped with jade rings or pale blue ones that look like large format rigatoni bent into interesting shapes. —Devra Ferst, Bon Appétit, 11 Apr. 2024

More recently, an eclipse on May 29, 1919, enabled measurements that recorded the sun bending the path of light in accordance with, and thus verifying, Einstein’s theory of general relativity. —Rivka Galchen, The New Yorker, 5 Apr. 2024

To me, Greta Gerwig possesses the creativity and the open-mindedness of a generation of artists who are bending the codes. —Elsa Keslassy, Variety, 3 Apr. 2024

Among its many duties, the LSST Camera will search for evidence of weak gravitational lensing, which occurs when a gigantic galaxy’s gravitational mass bends light pathways from the galaxies behind it. —Andrew Paul, Popular Science, 3 Apr. 2024

Avery, in the guise of Bridgeman, pretended his ship was a slaver bending the rules as so many did, trafficking enslaved Africans and elephant tusks without the seal of approval from the Royal African Company, which owned the British crown’s monopoly over the trade. —Sean Kingsley, Smithsonian Magazine, 2 Apr. 2024

Exposure to Environmental Conditions: Extreme temperature fluctuations and humidity can weaken seams and connections, causing duct leakage, and pests (such as rodents) can damage or bend ductwork. —Tyler Shepherd, USA TODAY, 2 Apr. 2024

For the neck, this means having your head in perfect alignment without bending forward, back, sideways or rotated, as this puts the least amount of stress on the supporting structures of the cervical spine. —Jacqueline Laurean Yates, ABC News, 1 Apr. 2024

Jonathan Kanfer, a West Palm Beach, Florida, agent, suspects names and lists of potential clients are being circulated to agents willing to bend the rules. —Julie Appleby, NPR, 1 Apr. 2024

Noun

Sensitivity and handling in a rod comes down to how and where the rod blank bends. —Max Inchausti, Field & Stream, 28 Mar. 2024

Its banks are lined with lively city streets and walkways, and tour boats navigate its bends daily. —Sean Neumann, Peoplemag, 29 Feb. 2024

It’s designed like a Formula 1 race car, capable of generating the necessary amount of down force to enable fast track driving, especially round corners and bends. —Siddharth Philip, Fortune Europe, 23 Feb. 2024

The curl was gone, and in its place, a handful of easy bends and relaxed waves underneath a black leather baseball cap. —Kara Nesvig, Allure, 16 Feb. 2024

There are two large decks, one outside the kitchen for easy-breezy barbecues and the other positioned to take in a fetching view of one of the many scenic bends in the bayou. —Mark David, Robb Report, 15 Feb. 2024

Surprises emerge around every bend in the forms of oak thickets, quartz deposits, errant water birds and lakeside riparian vegetation. —Mare Czinar, The Arizona Republic, 7 Mar. 2024

Coming around the bend is Gemini Ultra, an update of the original model which the company is still working on. —Amrita Khalid, The Verge, 30 Jan. 2024

There’s a period of the bends and depressurizing, on top of how well the last one did. —Brian Davids, The Hollywood Reporter, 17 Nov. 2023

Word History

Etymology

Verb and Noun (1)

Middle English, from Old English bendan; akin to Old English bend fetter — more at band

Noun (2)

Middle English, from Middle French bende, of Germanic origin; akin to Old High German binta, bant band — more at band

First Known Use

Verb

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Noun (1)

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun (2)

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing bend

• bend a rule
• bend double
• bend one's ear
• bend the truth
• bend to the will of (someone)
• bend under one's own weight
• fisherman's bend
• sheet bend
• bend (the) facts
• S-bend
• bend sinister
• bend/stretch the rules
• U-bend
• carrick bend
• bend someone's ear
• bend over backwards
• around the bend
• bend over backward
• round the bend

Kids Definition

bend

1 of 2 verb

ˈbend 

bent ˈbent  ; bending

1

: to pull tight

bend a bow

2

: to curve or cause a change of shape

bend a wire into a circle

3

: to turn in a certain direction

bent their steps toward town

4

: to apply or apply oneself closely

she bent herself to the task

5

: to curve out of line

the road bends to the left

6

: to curve downward : stoop

bend over and pick it up

bend

2 of 2 noun

1

: the act or process of bending : the state of being bent

2

: something (as a curved part of a stream) that is bent

3

plural : a severe disorder marked by pain (as in joints), by difficulty in breathing, and often by collapsing and caused by release of gas bubbles (as of nitrogen) in the tissues upon too rapid a change from an environment of high air pressure to one of lower air pressure

called also caisson disease, decompression sickness

Geographical Definition

Bend

geographical name

ˈbend 

city on the Deschutes River in central Oregon population 76,639