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, apply, buckle, devote, giveRelated 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), workNear 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 aim, cast, direct, head, hold, level, pinpoint, set, trainRelated Words sight; bear, face; concentrate, focus; incline, orient, steerNear 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, curve, bow, crook, fall off, hook, round, sweep, swerve, trend, wheelRelated Words circle, coil, curlicue, curl, loop, spiral; turn, twist, wind; deviate, veerAntonyms 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 garble, color, cook, distort, falsify, fudge, misinterpret, misrelate, misrepresent, misstate, pervert, slant, twist, warpRelated 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, prevaricateNear 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, fasten, fixRelated 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 upNear Antonyms break up, disconnect, disjoin, disjoint, dissever, dissociate, disunite, divide, divorce, part, separate, sever, split, sunder, uncouple, unlink, unyoke; loose, loosen; unbind, unfix, unlash, untieAntonyms detach, undo, unfasten, unhook