bend1
• verb (past and past part. bent) 1 give or have a curved or angled shape, form, or course. 2 lean or curve the body downwards; stoop. 3 force or be forced to give in. 4 interpret or modify (a rule) to suit oneself. 5 direct (one’s attention or energies) to a task. • noun 1 a curved or angled part or course. 2 a kind of knot used to join two ropes together, or one rope to another object. 3 (the bends) treated as sing. decompression sickness. — PHRASES bend someone’s ear informal talk to someone at length or in an unwelcome way. round the bend informal mad. — DERIVATIVES bendable adjective bendy adjective. — ORIGIN Old English, put in bonds, tension a bow ; related to BAND1.
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