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
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
4
as in curves
to turn away from a straight line or course
the stream bends slightly to the east
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
6
as in attaches
to cause (something) to hold to another
bend a leash to the dog's collar
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of bends
Vanessa Etienne, PEOPLE, 2 Oct. 2025
Autocrats do not think that history bends toward justice.
—Richard Stengel, Time, 1 Oct. 2025
Let’s be the city that bends that curve in the right direction by making room for more families who want to learn, work and belong here.
—Belal Aftab, Mercury News, 30 Sep. 2025
Like his film Bacurau, The Secret Agent bends back on its own genre, indulging in tangents and side characters and tonal shifts throughout.
—Vulture Staff, Vulture, 23 Sep. 2025
Unlike the rectus abdominis, which covers the front of the abdomen and mainly bends your torso forward, your obliques control rotation, resist unwanted twisting and keep your rib cage stacked over your pelvis.
—Dana Santas, CNN Money, 17 Sep. 2025
When pressure bends the ice, this liquid flows through the channels.
—Neetika Walter, Interesting Engineering, 17 Sep. 2025
But Sex and the City bends to no rules!
—Jordan Hoffman, Entertainment Weekly, 6 Sep. 2025
Yet Antonia isn’t fragile; her forceful imagination bends the others to her will.
—Jillian Steinhauer, New Yorker, 5 Sep. 2025
Neetika Walter, Interesting Engineering, 2 Oct. 2025
The tech — Loomia Electronic Layer (LEL) — is a flexible circuit sheet that bends, sketches, and survives in fabrics while carrying functions such as heating, lighting, or pressure detection.
—Jamie Landeau, Refinery29, 24 Sep. 2025
Sophisticated econometric forecasting models are bad at calling inflection points, when a lasting upward trend bends into a lasting downward one or vice versa.
—Edward Lotterman, Twin Cities, 21 Sep. 2025
An Einstein Cross forms when the gravity of galaxies in the foreground bends and splits the light of a more distant galaxy into four distinct images.
—Samantha Mathewson, Space.com, 20 Sep. 2025
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 results in more daylight.
—Janet Loehrke, USA Today, 19 Sep. 2025
The fairway bends gently left, bordered by trees and water on the left side, a bunker on the right, and a second water carry into a green guarded by a large bunker on the left.
—Tim Corlett, Forbes.com, 15 Sep. 2025
The river’s bends are driven by larger-scale, longer-term phenomena — the shifting of tectonic plates, the erosion of the riverbank by plant roots, the volume of water flowing through the atmosphere and landscape, and more.
—Joseph Howlett, Quanta Magazine, 15 Sep. 2025
Broncos’ defense bends but doesn’t break for the second straight drive.
—Joe Nguyen, Denver Post, 14 Sep. 2025
Verb
In that moment, Dupree involuntarily punches him and the pair go quiet as Dooley cusses and bends over wincing in pain.
—Vanessa Etienne, PEOPLE, 2 Oct. 2025
Autocrats do not think that history bends toward justice.
—Richard Stengel, Time, 1 Oct. 2025
Let’s be the city that bends that curve in the right direction by making room for more families who want to learn, work and belong here.
—Belal Aftab, Mercury News, 30 Sep. 2025
Like his film Bacurau, The Secret Agent bends back on its own genre, indulging in tangents and side characters and tonal shifts throughout.
—Vulture Staff, Vulture, 23 Sep. 2025
Unlike the rectus abdominis, which covers the front of the abdomen and mainly bends your torso forward, your obliques control rotation, resist unwanted twisting and keep your rib cage stacked over your pelvis.
—Dana Santas, CNN Money, 17 Sep. 2025
When pressure bends the ice, this liquid flows through the channels.
—Neetika Walter, Interesting Engineering, 17 Sep. 2025
But Sex and the City bends to no rules!
—Jordan Hoffman, Entertainment Weekly, 6 Sep. 2025
Yet Antonia isn’t fragile; her forceful imagination bends the others to her will.
—Jillian Steinhauer, New Yorker, 5 Sep. 2025
Noun
Its jet bends sharply, blasting a huge radio ring about 100,000 light-years wide.
—Neetika Walter, Interesting Engineering, 2 Oct. 2025
The tech — Loomia Electronic Layer (LEL) — is a flexible circuit sheet that bends, sketches, and survives in fabrics while carrying functions such as heating, lighting, or pressure detection.
—Jamie Landeau, Refinery29, 24 Sep. 2025
Sophisticated econometric forecasting models are bad at calling inflection points, when a lasting upward trend bends into a lasting downward one or vice versa.
—Edward Lotterman, Twin Cities, 21 Sep. 2025
An Einstein Cross forms when the gravity of galaxies in the foreground bends and splits the light of a more distant galaxy into four distinct images.
—Samantha Mathewson, Space.com, 20 Sep. 2025
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 results in more daylight.
—Janet Loehrke, USA Today, 19 Sep. 2025
The fairway bends gently left, bordered by trees and water on the left side, a bunker on the right, and a second water carry into a green guarded by a large bunker on the left.
—Tim Corlett, Forbes.com, 15 Sep. 2025
The river’s bends are driven by larger-scale, longer-term phenomena — the shifting of tectonic plates, the erosion of the riverbank by plant roots, the volume of water flowing through the atmosphere and landscape, and more.
—Joseph Howlett, Quanta Magazine, 15 Sep. 2025
Broncos’ defense bends but doesn’t break for the second straight drive.
—Joe Nguyen, Denver Post, 14 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for bends
Verb
-
The Methodist church, a white wedding cake built in 1929, was a total loss; the town’s oldest commercial building, a grand colonnaded structure from 1924, looked like the Roman Forum, arches yawning around a central void.—
Dana Goodyear,
New Yorker,
22 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
The piece followed the guidelines of the city's Public Art for Neighborhoods Program, which devotes 1% of the value of its incentives to public art.—
Domenica Bongiovanni,
IndyStar,
2 Oct. 2025
-
Late in The Gales of November, Bacon — who’s written books on leadership and college football, among other topics — devotes two chapters to Lightfoot’s epic ballad.—
John U. Bacon,
Rolling Stone,
30 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Through counseling, peer support groups, life skills education and direct outreach, the organization aims to provide stability, healing, and a sense of visibility to children often overlooked by social systems.—
Kansas City Star,
Kansas City Star,
7 Oct. 2025
-
Gilman aims to reopen the indoor space by the end of October.—
Bridget Fogarty,
jsonline.com,
7 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
In the example below, Ilkay Gundogan curves his run to prevent Alisson from passing back to Virgil van Dijk, while Victor Osimhen’s presence puts goalkeeper Alisson off passing to Ibrahima Konate or Dominik Szoboszlai.—
The Athletic UK Staff,
New York Times,
7 Oct. 2025
-
The mortality curves from Gompertz models associated with the three migratory strategies are presented on panel A–C—the death rates m(x) (gray dots) are also presented.—
GrrlScientist,
Forbes.com,
2 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
This pressure also distorts decision-making.—
Benjamin Laker,
Forbes.com,
19 Sep. 2025
-
Stress or overconfidence distorts risk perception and influences decisions far more than spreadsheets.—
Bruce Helmer,
Twin Cities,
13 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Russia still attaches strategic importance to this stretch of territory, since it had been pledged control of it after the 2020 war.—
Thomas de Waal,
Foreign Affairs,
22 Sep. 2025
-
Dropla also created the Droplet Device – a portable AI unit that attaches to drone controllers, allowing soldiers to detect mines on supply routes in real time.—
David Kirichenko,
Forbes.com,
16 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
Its outstanding appeal, grandish curvatures and extraordinary interior design are just the norm for the upscale interior brand.—
Marc D. Grasso,
Boston Herald,
18 Sep. 2025
-
Posture Changes Spine curvatures can make standing up straight difficult, causing lower right back pain.—
Brandi Jones,
Health,
6 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
In Korea’s case, those economic issue include the immigration raid at a Hyundai plant in Georgia that saw hundreds of South Koreans detained; and in Japan’s by a trade deal with Washington that some analysts say tilts in the US’s favor.—
Brad Lendon,
CNN Money,
16 Sep. 2025
-
The warps also mimic the tilts of the orbits of the planets in our solar system.—
Keith Cooper,
Space.com,
27 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Bends.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bends. Accessed 8 Oct. 2025.
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