the bends
Definition of the bends
medical
: a painful and dangerous condition caused by rising to the surface too quickly after being deep underwater breathing compressed air
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Word by Word Definitions
: to constrain or strain to tension by curving
: to turn or force from straight or even to curved or angular
: to force from a proper shape
: the act or process of bending : the state of being bent
: something that is bent: such as
: a curved part of a path (as of a stream or road)
: a diagonal band that runs from the dexter chief (see 3chief 1) to the sinister base (see 1base 4) on a heraldic shield — compare bend sinister
: a knot by which one rope is fastened to another or to some object
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