as in swollen
enlarged beyond normal from internal pressure
bees with abdomens distended with honey are less apt to sting
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in swelled
to make or become larger especially because of pressure from inside
The illness can cause the stomach to distend.
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Dissimilar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of distended
Sara Holdren, Vulture, 29 Sep. 2025
Following too much pasta or one too many sweet treats, my stomach gets quite sensitive—resulting in a feeling of tightness and a distended, rumbling tummy.
—Kiana Murden, Vogue, 20 May 2025
Bloating causes your belly to feel full and look distended.
—Kathleen Felton, Health, 9 June 2024
But for all its brawn and atmosphere and robustly choreographed combat, this is a distended historical tapestry too sprawling to remain compelling, particularly when its focus veers away from the central couple.
—David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter, 3 Sep. 2019
Adjective
Once per act, a second duo crashes in on Didi and Gogo, providing the tramps’ power balance with a lurid, distended foil.
—Sara Holdren, Vulture, 29 Sep. 2025
Following too much pasta or one too many sweet treats, my stomach gets quite sensitive—resulting in a feeling of tightness and a distended, rumbling tummy.
—Kiana Murden, Vogue, 20 May 2025
Bloating causes your belly to feel full and look distended.
—Kathleen Felton, Health, 9 June 2024
But for all its brawn and atmosphere and robustly choreographed combat, this is a distended historical tapestry too sprawling to remain compelling, particularly when its focus veers away from the central couple.
—David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter, 3 Sep. 2019
Recent Examples of Synonyms for distended
Adjective
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Who among us had a little pad on our nightstand, a stack of swollen notebooks beneath our bed, pages puffy with scrawl?—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
22 Oct. 2025
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The swollen fibers then shrink and tighten up during drying, especially under high heat.—
Brandee Gruener,
Southern Living,
21 Oct. 2025
Verb
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The crowd in Carlsbad swelled — estimates ranged from 7,000 to 10,000 — with sidewalks packed over a roughly mile-long stretch of Carlsbad Boulevard north from about Tamarack Avenue through Carlsbad Village.—
Kristen Taketa,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
18 Oct. 2025
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When torrential rains hit a swath of Mexico last week, the Cazones River swelled so fast there was virtually no time to flee.—
Cristopher Rogel Blanquet,
New York Times,
17 Oct. 2025
Verb
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The debut of gym-style competition climbing in the 2021 Tokyo Olympics further expanded the sport’s visibility, bringing powerhouse women climbers like Janja Garnbret and Brooke Raboutou to the global stage.—
Kelli María Korducki,
HubSpot,
17 Oct. 2025
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Once a single dining room, the space has expanded to include six separate rooms and a full-service bar, totaling 13,000 square feet.—
Alana Al-Hatlani,
Southern Living,
17 Oct. 2025
Verb
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In a survey from brokerage firm Evercore ISI conducted last year, ChatGPT respondents saying ChatGPT was their top search provider increased to 5% from 1% four months prior.—
Beatrice Nolan,
Fortune,
22 Oct. 2025
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Warming trends delay first freeze in US Fall days that are unusually warm have increased in 238 cities, or 98% of the 243 cities that were examined by Climate Central.—
Janet Loehrke,
USA Today,
22 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Carvey explained that his ego had been inflated during that period of his career due to his increasing popularity from SNL and the Wayne's World movie.—
Wesley Stenzel,
Entertainment Weekly,
18 Oct. 2025
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While some of those numbers were perhaps inflated by PED use, there's no doubt that Ramírez was born to hit.—
Shaun McAvoy,
MSNBC Newsweek,
17 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Testosterone can increase the chances of the prostate becoming enlarged, causing blockage of urine.—
Shiv Sudhakar,
FOXNews.com,
4 Oct. 2025
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Other potentially concerning changes including nipple discharge, pain or swelling in their breast, changes in the color of the nipple or breast, the nipple turning inward, painful or enlarged lymph nodes in the armpits or near the collarbone, or redness or flaky skin on the breast.—
Katia Hetter,
CNN Money,
1 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Distended.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/distended. Accessed 23 Oct. 2025.
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