Synonyms of bends

bends 1 of 2

verb

present tense third-person singular of bend

1

as in arches

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

• arches
• hooks
• curves
• bows
• twists
• swerves
• curls
• turns
• waves
• crooks
• deflects
• veers
• swirls
• rounds
• inflects
• reflects
• weaves
• arcs
• loops
• diverts
• coils
• spirals
• warps
• meanders
• kinks
• inclines
• winds
• entwines
• twines
• slopes
• dents
• dimples
• incurves
• incurvates
• enrolls
• declines

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• straightens
• unbends
• uncurls

2

as in devotes

to occupy (oneself) diligently or with close attention

bent herself to the task for the rest of the day

Synonyms & Similar Words

• devotes
• applies
• gives
• buckles
• commits
• addresses
• gets cracking
• works
• gets with it
• turns one's hand
• spends
• sets (to)
• gets one's act together
• settles (down)
• reapplies
• stresses
• exerts
• exhausts
• engages
• involves
• troubles
• busies
• concerns
• humps
• wears out
• readdresses
• knuckles down
• hustles
• plows
• taxes
• grinds
• plunges (in)
• strains
• puts out
• plods
• pitches in
• carries on
• plugs (away)
• pegs (away)

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• plays
• idles
• dawdles
• dallies
• fools around
• fiddles (around)
• trifles
• putters (around)
• messes around
• monkeys (around)
• potters (around)
• dillydallies

3

as in aims

to point or turn (something) toward a target or goal

bent all of his efforts toward making his first documentary film

Synonyms & Similar Words

• aims
• casts
• directs
• holds
• heads
• sets
• levels
• trains
• focuses
• pinpoints
• steers
• sights
• faces
• concentrates
• inclines
• orients
• bears

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• curves
• deflects
• diverts
• shunts
• averts
• detours
• sidetracks
• rechannels

4

as in curves

to turn away from a straight line or course

the stream bends slightly to the east

Synonyms & Similar Words

• curves
• sweeps
• bows
• turns
• arches
• swerves
• trends
• rounds
• winds
• falls off
• wheels
• loops
• hooks
• arcs
• curls
• spirals
• circles
• coils
• crooks
• curlicues
• twists
• deviates
• veers

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• straightens

5

as in distorts

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 & Similar Words

• distorts
• misrepresents
• twists
• warps
• slants
• falsifies
• cooks
• perverts
• misinterprets
• complicates
• misstates
• obscures
• garbles
• colors
• fudges
• misrelates
• confuses
• censors
• mistakes
• misspeaks
• masks
• disguises
• dissembles
• misdescribes
• mistranslates
• camouflages
• bowdlerizes
• whitewashes
• veils
• lies
• glosses (over)
• prevaricates
• belies
• mystifies
• equivocates
• mixes (up)
• palters
• confounds
• fibs

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• explains
• interprets
• illustrates
• clarifies
• illuminates
• spells out
• clears (up)
• deciphers

6

as in attaches

to cause (something) to hold to another

bend a leash to the dog's collar

Synonyms & Similar Words

• attaches
• affixes
• ties
• glues
• connects
• clips
• fastens
• straps
• fixes
• adheres
• clamps
• hangs
• clenches
• sticks
• pins
• links
• screws
• clasps
• harnesses
• tackles
• tacks
• nails
• clinches
• latches
• rivets
• toggles
• joins
• yokes
• lashes
• staples
• cinches
• shackles
• bolts
• laces
• unites
• reattaches
• pastes
• buttons
• plasters
• coapts
• hasps
• refastens
• resecures
• reaffixes
• battens
• refixes
• belays
• does up

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• detaches
• splits
• undoes
• unfastens
• unhooks
• divides
• parts
• disconnects
• separates
• severs
• dissociates
• breaks up
• divorces
• loosens
• uncouples
• sunders
• disjoins
• looses
• disunites
• unties
• dissevers
• disjoints
• unlinks
• unbinds
• unyokes
• unfixes
• unlashes

bends

2 of 2

noun

plural of bend

1

as in curvatures

something that curves or is curved

it's hard to see around that bend in the road, so be careful

Synonyms & Similar Words

• curves
• curvatures
• turns
• angles
• winds
• folds
• bows
• arches
• arcs
• crooks
• inflections
• twists
• corners
• curls
• slopes
• warps
• windings
• coils
• loops
• rings
• swirls
• spirals
• circles
• inclines
• buckles
• kinks
• convolutions
• reflections
• rounds
• ringlets
• flexures
• curlicues
• inclinations
• hairpins
• declines
• doglegs
• incurvatures
• turnoffs

2

as in tilts

the act of positioning or an instance of being positioned at an angle

did knee bends for exercise

Synonyms & Similar Words

• tilts
• tips
• lists
• cocks
• nods
• inclinations
• twists
• anglings
• turns
• dips
• bows
• veers

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of bends

Verb

The Sri Lanka–born, San Diego–raised 28-year-old UC Berkeley dropout bends her generation’s activist streak inside out and roasts from a place of familiarity. — Kathryn Vanarendonk, Vulture, 21 Sep. 2026

The shofar sounds, and for a heartbeat, on that sleek locomotive, time bends toward the eternal. — Ben Corn, Christian Science Monitor, 19 Sep. 2026

So when the foreground star passes almost exactly in front of the more distant one, its gravity bends some of the background star’s light toward you. — Thomas Fauchez, The Conversation, 14 Sep. 2026

As the motor pulls the tendons, the tail bends into an S-shape, creating the side-to-side motion that quietly moves the whole device forward. — Maryna Holovnova, New Atlas, 8 Sep. 2026

Authorities said Garcia was speeding down River Road, a two-lane highway that bends with the river, when the road turned. — Ruben Vives, Los Angeles Times, 8 Sep. 2026

Once again, Anna takes the bait and, once again, the stranger bends the rules. — Damon Wise, Deadline, 7 Sep. 2026

To study dark energy, Roman will measure how gravity bends light across large cosmic distances — creating a 3D map of dark matter in the process. — Ashley Strickland, CNN Money, 30 Aug. 2026

Plus, there are packable options like the Shupua Women’s Lace Flats at $22, which feature a flexible sole that bends in half to save precious suitcase space. — Julia Morlino, Travel + Leisure, 30 Aug. 2026

Noun

What singles out Treville is its immense beauty and seclusion, despite Positano being only a couple of hairpin bends away. — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 26 Sep. 2026

Day and night aren't exactly 12 hours long on the day of the equinox because the Earth's atmosphere refracts, or bends, light in an optical illusion that brings more daylight than there really is. — Dinah Voyles Pulver, USA Today, 22 Sep. 2026

But then, somewhere past the point where impatience would have quit, the curve bends, and the results stop looking modest at all. — Richard Ceffalio, Forbes.com, 22 Sep. 2026

When a whisker bends against a surface, these sensors measure tiny pressure shifts to calculate contact depth and location in three dimensions instantly. — Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 18 Sep. 2026

Normal Joint Movement As your knee bends and straightens, the kneecap moves within the groove at the end of the thighbone. — Kristen Gasnick, Verywell Health, 17 Sep. 2026

Whether air-dried or finished with a curling iron, adding bends and creases to an above-shoulder style gives it an airy finish. — Calin Van Paris, InStyle, 3 Sep. 2026

The pipe takes multiple bends before feeding into a handmade box muffler that doubles as a functional heat shield. — New Atlas, 2 Sep. 2026

The long, glacial structure’s facade tightens, bends and twists. — Los Angeles Times, 2 Sep. 2026