tend 1 of 2

verb (1)

ˈtend How to pronounce tend (audio)
Definition of tendnext
as in to lean
to show a liking or proneness (for something) her wardrobe tends toward dark colors and heavy fabrics

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

tend

2 of 2

verb (2)

1
as in to watch
to take charge of especially on behalf of another tend the store while I run an errand

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to grow
to look after or assist the growth of by labor and care lately I haven't been doing a good job of tending my garden

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in to cultivate
to work by plowing, sowing, and raising crops on plots that during the war were tended by city dwellers as vegetable gardens

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4
as in to manage
to look after and make decisions about the dying patriarch wondered who would tend the family business after he was gone

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Example Sentences

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.
Recent Examples of tend
Verb
Curling is on basically every day during the Winter Games and tends to generate a cult following every four years. — Eben Novy-Williams, Sportico.com, 29 Oct. 2026 Drivers have more difficulty seeing pedestrians in the dark, especially children who tend to be smaller and less visible. — Faye Chiu, CNN Money, 29 Oct. 2026 Animal art tended to be focused on the masculine world of sport—hunting, horse riding, and, a little later, horse racing. — Literary Hub, 28 Oct. 2026 Smaller rollers tend to produce tighter curves, while larger ones create looser waves or more subtle shaping. — Ashley Lynch, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 28 Oct. 2026 See All Example Sentences for tend
Recent Examples of Synonyms for tend
  1. lean
  2. watch
  3. grow
  4. cultivate
  5. manage
  6. supervise
  7. produce
  8. operate
Verb
  • More retreat than resort, the 17-room lodge leans into its eco-conscious cred, maximizing the natural beauty of the surroundings and bringing those elements indoors to create a fully restorative experience.
    — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 29 Oct. 2026
  • The president leaned into cultural issues to portray Talarico as too liberal for Texas.
    — STEVEN SLOAN, Arkansas Online, 28 Oct. 2026
Definition of lean
Verb
  • Baking with a friend, decorating with the kids or watching a favorite holiday movie can layer new memories onto familiar traditions without costing much.
    — Ashley Lynch, Sacbee.com, 29 Oct. 2026
  • Now watching the countdown to the livestream on a smartphone, an elevator was taken to the Pulitzer office on the seventh floor, but it was locked.
    — New York Daily News Editorial Board, New York Daily News, 29 Oct. 2026
Definition of watch
Verb
  • The bank also expects revenue to grow annually through 2028, targeting 5% growth that year compared with 2027, excluding notable items and on a constant currency basis.
    — Jenny Lee, CNBC, 27 Oct. 2026
  • The vote, which had been scheduled for last week, was delayed after two days of deliberations because of growing wariness among Egyptians concerned about an intervention in Yemen's long-running conflict.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 27 Oct. 2026
Definition of grow
Verb
  • Also known as cattails or typha, the plants can be cultivated through paludiculture, the farming of wetland crops on rewetted land.
    — Alexandra Harrell, Footwear News, 22 Oct. 2026
  • It may be meant to teach posture or independence, invite play, cultivate an appreciation of craft, or eventually become an heirloom.
    — Steven Weill, Architectural Digest, 22 Oct. 2026
Definition of cultivate
Verb
  • Union Berlin managed to draw at Augsburg 1-1 after a player from each was sent off in separate incidents.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 24 Oct. 2026
  • The winner will gain one of five seats on the board that runs the highway district, which is responsible for building, managing and maintaining local roads and bridges countywide — as well as setting ACHD’s nearly $260 million annual budget.
    — Mark Dee, Idaho Statesman, 24 Oct. 2026
Definition of manage
Verb
  • An independent committee found that the Housing Bureau’s independent checking unit failed in its duties supervising the maintenance work.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 29 Oct. 2026
  • But the judge initially permitted him to supervise prosecutions in his other roles — an arrangement the subsequent 9th Circuit ruling undermined.
    — Brittny Mejia, Los Angeles Times, 28 Oct. 2026
Definition of supervise
Verb
  • Co-produced by John Congleton, the record swaps synth-pop for gutter-punk, with distorted guitars and clattering surf riffs as its weapons of choice.
    — Zach Schonfeld, Pitchfork, 26 Oct. 2026
  • However, this movie carries a hefty $100 million price tag (stop-motion animation is labor-intensive and takes years to produce) and likely won’t turn a theatrical profit.
    — Rebecca Rubin, Variety, 25 Oct. 2026
Definition of produce
Verb
  • But there are actual terrifying objects in space, entities operating on a scale that crush our minds and reduce our human experience to a mote of dust floating in the dark.
    — Phil Plait, Scientific American, 30 Oct. 2026
  • Military bases would need reliable fuel distribution, water treatment, secure communications, functioning maintenance systems and personnel capable of operating under emergency conditions.
    — Prabhat Ranjan Mishra, Interesting Engineering, 30 Oct. 2026
Definition of operate

Browse Nearby Words

tenants
tend
tended
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Cite this Entry

“Tend.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/tend. Accessed 31 Oct. 2026.

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