1
as in hole
a sunken area forming a separate space
there was a big dent in the car's hood where something had hit it
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in decrease
the amount by which something is lessened
a little belt-tightening would at least make a small dent in our credit-card debt
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in to reduce
to make smaller in amount, volume, or extent
hopefully this vacation won't dent our bank account too much
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of dent
Adam Summers, San Diego Union-Tribune, 19 May 2026
Under Mayor Michael Johnston, Denver has done better at providing shelter to people living on the street, has made a serious dent in crime, and is speeding up approval times for developments, Walker said.
—Aldo Svaldi, Denver Post, 18 May 2026
James Horncastle, New York Times, 25 May 2026
The war has dented these pillars.
—Daniel Benaim, Time, 18 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for dent
Noun
San Francisco currently spends about $700 million to $800 million per year on homelessness, aided by the passage in 2018 of the Proposition C gross receipts tax on businesses with annual revenue greater than $50 million, but has yet to make a dent in its intractable homelessness problem.
—Adam Summers, San Diego Union-Tribune, 19 May 2026
Under Mayor Michael Johnston, Denver has done better at providing shelter to people living on the street, has made a serious dent in crime, and is speeding up approval times for developments, Walker said.
—Aldo Svaldi, Denver Post, 18 May 2026
Verb
The club had been a firm contender in the Scudetto race, but a mid-season collapse dented their hopes.
—James Horncastle, New York Times, 25 May 2026
The war has dented these pillars.
—Daniel Benaim, Time, 18 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for dent
Recent Examples of Synonyms for dent
Noun
-
Fox hit big shots late as the Spurs avoided falling into a 3-0 hole, which no NBA team has escaped.—
Brian Mahoney,
Los Angeles Times,
9 June 2026
-
Whenever your outfit feels a little plain, these goodies will inject some welcome personality—all without blowing a hole in your budget.—
Jake Henry Smith,
Glamour,
8 June 2026
Noun
-
The results were in line with company expectations, but shares fell 23% in after-hours trading following the announcement on Wednesday evening, and the company is lowering its full-year outlook from a slight increase to a slight decrease.—
Madeleine Schulz,
Vogue,
4 June 2026
-
The range increase didn’t require something like a decrease in power—in fact, the standard Solterra got a few extra horsepower, taking it to 233 hp (174 kW) from a pair of identical front and rear motors.—
Jonathan M. Gitlin,
ArsTechnica,
4 June 2026
Verb
-
Before long, the living room is reduced to a bare stage, upon which only a couple of pulleys and switches are visible.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
9 June 2026
-
Each ergonomic Nuage seat fully reclines to improve circulation and reduce back pressure.—
Rachel Cormack,
Robb Report,
8 June 2026
Noun
-
The guiding image of my process was not an outline, but the ball pit found at indoor playgrounds, beloved by children and feared by adults who carry hand sanitizer just for such activities.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
29 May 2026
-
This was once the site of the deepest pit in the world.—
Michael Walker,
New York Times,
29 May 2026
Noun
-
Months later, after Measure PP’s failure, the council approved over $12 million in budget reductions, which included cuts to the library, parks maintenance staff, and crossing guards.—
Kyle Martin,
Mercury News,
7 June 2026
-
This reduction in size and mass makes the architecture especially attractive for electric vehicle applications, where drivetrain compactness is a critical design constraint.—
Bojan Stojkovski,
Interesting Engineering,
7 June 2026
Noun
-
Unlike standard carbon filters, these molecular cages force PFAS molecules to clump together inside a cavity, achieving a 98 percent removal rate.—
Arthur Zaczkiewicz,
Footwear News,
3 June 2026
-
The bees will form a temporary cluster, hanging out while scouts search the surrounding area for a more permanent home in hollow spaces like tree cavities or, occasionally, the walls of a home.—
Madeline Bartos,
CBS News,
3 June 2026
Noun
-
Holmes fashioned herself as the next Steve Jobs, until a reporter at the Wall Street Journal blew the lid off Theranos' fraudulent claims of developing a state-of-the-art medical test that required only a single drop of blood to accurately detect results like glucose levels and cancer.—
James Mercadante,
Entertainment Weekly,
4 June 2026
-
The latter is no small feat because supersonic speed dramatically changes the aerodynamics of an aircraft, making missile launches or bomb drops extremely difficult, to put it mildly.—
David Szondy
June 04,
New Atlas,
4 June 2026
Noun
-
SoftBank Group dropped over 10% amid a broader decline in Asia tech stocks.—
Lisa Kailai Han,
CNBC,
3 June 2026
-
Consistent short sleep, however, has been linked to measurable declines in cognitive performance and day-to-day functioning, while chronic sleep deprivation is associated with more serious long-term health risks.—
Sharon Brandwein,
USA Today,
3 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Dent.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/dent. Accessed 10 Jun. 2026.
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