as in curved
marked by a long series of irregular curves
the river takes a long bending path to the sea
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in arching
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 & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in devoting
to occupy (oneself) diligently or with close attention
bent herself to the task for the rest of the day
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in aiming
to point or turn (something) toward a target or goal
bent all of his efforts toward making his first documentary film
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4
as in curving
to turn away from a straight line or course
the stream bends slightly to the east
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
5
as in distorting
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
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6
as in attaching
to cause (something) to hold to another
bend a leash to the dog's collar
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of bending
Richard Lawson, HollywoodReporter, 13 May 2026
The galaxy's red and orange spiral arms bending outward can measure tens or even hundreds of light-years across.
—Chelsea Gohd, Space.com, 13 May 2026
Anne seemed utterly charmed by the gesture, bending down to hold Vegas' front paws with a smile.
—Meredith Kile, PEOPLE, 12 May 2026
Cassie’s OnlyFans journey begins with her making content posing as a dog, replete with dog ears, collar, leash, wrist cuffs, tail, and a satin corset from Sweeney’s lingerie line SYRN, bending over and lapping up water from a bowl on the ground.
—Marlow Stern, Variety, 10 May 2026
These appear when the intense, unresolved light from the AGN interacts with the geometry of Webb’s hexagonal mirror segments and the support struts of its secondary mirror, slightly bending the light and creating the characteristic pattern.
—Bojan Stojkovski, Interesting Engineering, 10 May 2026
Doué picked up a pass on the left side of the penalty area and skipped past three players before bending a fine shot into the bottom right corner in the 83rd minute of a mostly dull contest.
—ABC News, 10 May 2026
This helps so that people aren’t bending.
—Amy Kunst, Sacbee.com, 7 May 2026
The only way to subdue the dizziness may be to let go of the big ideas—nation, nature, arcs of history bending toward justice, and so on.
—Sebastian Smee, New Yorker, 4 May 2026
Verb
If something about the now-problematic gender-bending killer of Camp Miasma reminds you of 1983’s Sleepaway Camp, Schoenbrun is not coy about the parallel.
—Richard Lawson, HollywoodReporter, 13 May 2026
The galaxy's red and orange spiral arms bending outward can measure tens or even hundreds of light-years across.
—Chelsea Gohd, Space.com, 13 May 2026
Anne seemed utterly charmed by the gesture, bending down to hold Vegas' front paws with a smile.
—Meredith Kile, PEOPLE, 12 May 2026
Cassie’s OnlyFans journey begins with her making content posing as a dog, replete with dog ears, collar, leash, wrist cuffs, tail, and a satin corset from Sweeney’s lingerie line SYRN, bending over and lapping up water from a bowl on the ground.
—Marlow Stern, Variety, 10 May 2026
These appear when the intense, unresolved light from the AGN interacts with the geometry of Webb’s hexagonal mirror segments and the support struts of its secondary mirror, slightly bending the light and creating the characteristic pattern.
—Bojan Stojkovski, Interesting Engineering, 10 May 2026
Doué picked up a pass on the left side of the penalty area and skipped past three players before bending a fine shot into the bottom right corner in the 83rd minute of a mostly dull contest.
—ABC News, 10 May 2026
This helps so that people aren’t bending.
—Amy Kunst, Sacbee.com, 7 May 2026
The only way to subdue the dizziness may be to let go of the big ideas—nation, nature, arcs of history bending toward justice, and so on.
—Sebastian Smee, New Yorker, 4 May 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for bending
Adjective
-
This curved table from Martha Stewart’s home line has a flat back that sits flush against the wall without sacrificing space.—
Rachel Trujillo,
PEOPLE,
9 May 2026
-
The company has often touted it as a solution for creating curved car displays.—
Michael Kan,
PC Magazine,
5 May 2026
Verb
-
Flow between arching and rounding your back to improve spinal mobility.—
Christopher Bergland,
Verywell Health,
11 May 2026
-
The gracefully arching evergreen foliage is edged in golden yellow, perfect for brightening shady gardens or porch pots year-round.—
Kim Toscano,
Southern Living,
10 May 2026
Verb
-
Cignetti has benefited from Indiana devoting more resources and spending on football than ever before, both from an infrastructure and roster perspective, and by using the transfer portal, where the Hoosiers were able to add several standouts.—
Antonio Morales,
New York Times,
12 May 2026
-
Thorne and director Marc Munden made other changes, devoting extra time to a destructive fire caused by the boys’ poor decision-making (and refusal to listen to Piggy).—
Stuart Miller,
Los Angeles Times,
4 May 2026
Verb
-
Clicks Technology’s Gadway said the company’s device emphasizes messaging and core functions, aiming to keep users focused on their original tasks instead of drifting into other apps.—
Sydney Goh,
CNBC,
9 May 2026
-
Authorities are aiming to complete the evacuation flights on Sunday and Monday, said Maria Van Kerkove, the director of the WHO’s Department of Epidemic and Pandemic Management, in a briefing Saturday.—
Iain Sullivan,
Los Angeles Times,
9 May 2026
Verb
-
Wilson is zoned for the 9th District, which extends across most of the state’s southern border before curving up to encompass the largely white and affluent Nashville suburbs.—
Matt Brown,
Los Angeles Times,
10 May 2026
-
Wilson is zoned for the 9th District, which extends across most of the state’s southern border before curving up to encompass the largely white and affluent Nashville suburbs.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
9 May 2026
Verb
-
His side accused Lively of distorting events on set and filed a defamation suit seeking $400 million in damages against Lively, her husband Ryan Reynolds and others.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
7 May 2026
-
Stern recommends hanging the silk item freely while steaming to prevent the garment from stretching or distorting.—
Louise Parks,
Martha Stewart,
4 May 2026
Verb
-
The Oakland Police Department said StarChase’s trackers had a high failure rate of attaching to vehicles, according to reporting from the Oaklandside.—
Andrew J. Campa,
Los Angeles Times,
7 May 2026
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According to the Army, this speed was made possible through the use of 3D printing for the warhead housing and the Picatinny Common Lethality Integration Kit (CLIK), which serves as a universal interface for attaching lethal payloads to various drone platforms.—
New Atlas,
New Atlas,
4 May 2026
Verb
-
Devon Toews was called for a hooking penalty, giving Minnesota 63 seconds of 4-on-3 power-play time.—
Corey Masisak,
Denver Post,
10 May 2026
-
Mason McTavish’s hooking minor proved costly as the Oilers scored just four seconds into the penalty.—
Andrew Knoll,
Oc Register,
27 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Bending.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bending. Accessed 16 May. 2026.
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