bent

English Online Dictionary. What means bent‎? What does bent mean?

English

Pronunciation

• (UK, US) enPR: bĕnt, IPA^(key): /bɛnt/
• Rhymes: -ɛnt

Etymology 1

From Middle English bent-, preterite stem (as in bente, benten, etc.), and Middle English bent, ibent, ybent, past participle forms of Middle English benden (“to bend”). Equivalent to bend +‎ -t.

Verb

bent

1. simple past and past participle of bend

Adjective

bent (comparative benter or more bent, superlative bentest or most bent)

1. (Of something that is usually straight) Folded, dented.

   Synonym: crooked

2. (colloquial, chiefly UK) Corrupt, dishonest.

   Synonym: crooked

3. (derogatory, colloquial, chiefly UK) Homosexual.

   Synonyms: queer; see also Thesaurus:homosexual
4. Determined or insistent.

   Synonym: hell-bent
5. (Of a person) leading a life of crime.
6. (slang, soccer) Inaccurately aimed.

7. (colloquial, chiefly US) Suffering from the bends.
8. (slang) High from both marijuana and alcohol.

Derived terms

Related terms

• (determined): hell-bent

Translations

Noun

bent (plural bents)

1. An inclination or talent.
2. A predisposition to act or react in a particular way.

3. The state of being curved, crooked, or inclined from a straight line; flexure; curvity.
4. A declivity or slope, as of a hill.
5. Particular direction or tendency; flexion; course.
6. (carpentry) A transverse frame of a framed structure; a subunit of framing.
   1. Such a subunit as a component of a barn's framing, joined to other bents by girts and summer beams.
   2. Such a subunit as a reinforcement to, or integral part of, a bridge's framing.
7. Tension; force of acting; energy; impetus.

Synonyms

• (an inclination or talent): disposition, predilection, proclivity, propensity, see also Thesaurus:predilection

Derived terms

Translations

Etymology 2

From Middle English bent, benet, from Old English *beonot (attested only in place-names and personal names), from Proto-West Germanic *binut (“reed, rush”), of uncertain origin.

Noun

bent (countable and uncountable, plural bents)

1. Any of various stiff or reedy grasses.

   Synonym: bentgrass
2. A grassy area, grassland.
   • c. 1500, The Ballad of Chevy Chase

     Bowmen bickered upon the bent.

3. The old dried stalks of grasses.

Derived terms

Translations

Dutch

Etymology

Innovative form replacing older zijt, which is still maintained in combination with the archaic/southern gij. The form bent was built by analogy with ben (“I am”) after jij had adopted the function of second-person singular. In this it may (but need not) have been influenced by Middle Dutch bes, the form used with the defunct singular pronoun du.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /bɛnt/
• Rhymes: -ɛnt

Verb

bent

1. second-person singular present indicative of zijn; are

References

Hungarian

Etymology

From benn, following the example of alant and lent.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ˈbɛnt]
• Hyphenation: bent
• Rhymes: -ɛnt

Adverb

bent (comparative beljebb or bentebb, superlative legbeljebb or legbentebb)

1. inside

   Synonym: benn

   Antonyms: kinn, kint

Derived terms

Related terms

References

Further reading

• bent , mostly redirecting to benn in Bárczi, Géza and László Országh. A magyar nyelv értelmező szótára (“The Explanatory Dictionary of the Hungarian Language”, abbr.: ÉrtSz.). Budapest: Akadémiai Kiadó, 1959–1962. Fifth ed., 1992: →ISBN
• bent in Nóra Ittzés, editor, A magyar nyelv nagyszótára [A Comprehensive Dictionary of the Hungarian Language] (Nszt.), Budapest: Akadémiai Kiadó, 2006–2031 (work in progress; published a–ez as of 2024).

Lithuanian

Adverb

bent

1. at least

   Synonyms: mažiausia, mažiausiai

Old Norse

Participle

bent

1. strong neuter nominative/accusative singular of bendr

Verb

bent

1. supine of benda

Scots

Alternative forms

• bynt

Etymology

From Old English beonet, compare Middle English bent.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈbɛnt/

Noun

bent (plural bents)

1. (archaic, 14th century) Coarse or wiry grass growing upon moorlands.
2. (archaic, 15th century) An area covered with coarse or wiry grass; a moor.

Derived terms

• benty (covered in bent)

Turkish

Etymology

From Persian بند (band).

Noun

bent (definite accusative bendi, plural bentler)

1. dam