distends

verb

present tense third-person singular of distend
as in expands
to make or become larger especially because of pressure from inside The illness can cause the stomach to distend.

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Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for distends
  1. expands
  2. swells
  3. increases
Verb
  • These events occur when extremely hot underground water suddenly turns into steam, expands, and blasts apart the surrounding rock.
    — Atharva Gosavi, Interesting Engineering, 12 Aug. 2026
  • Unlike the nighttime aurora oval, which expands dramatically during geomagnetic storms, the dayside auroral oval changes much less, making displays harder to see even during active space weather.
    — Daisy Dobrijevic, Space.com, 10 Aug. 2026
Definition of expands
Verb
  • Storm surge, swells and large waves will also be significant hazards irrespective of landfall.
    — Marshall Shepherd, Forbes.com, 15 Aug. 2026
  • At closest approach the planet swells in apparent size, revealing dark surface markings, polar ice caps and occasional dust storms.
    — Damian Peach, Space.com, 13 Aug. 2026
Definition of swells
Verb
  • Right now, the average hot day contains about 16 hot hours, but that increases to 19 hours in the medium scenario and 21 hours in the high scenario.
    — Scott K. Johnson, ArsTechnica, 11 Aug. 2026
  • The chance of rain increases a bit with the potential for spotty showers.
    — Lissette Gonzalez, CBS News, 11 Aug. 2026
Definition of increases
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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Cite this Entry

“Distends.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/distends. Accessed 18 Aug. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on distends

Nglish: Translation of distends for Spanish Speakers

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