26984 words

bend

8 definitions • 13 examples
1
to (cause to) curve:

Examples:

The road bends to the left after the traffic lights.
2
to move your body or part of your body so that it is not straight:

Examples:

I bent down and picked up the coins lying on the road.
Now, bend forward/over and touch your toes!
Make sure you bend your knees when you're picking up heavy objects.
After her fall she complained that she couldn't bend her leg properly.
3
in a position in which the knee of one leg is touching the floor:

Examples:

He went down on bended knee to ask her to marry him.
4
a curved part of something:

Examples:

There's a bend in the pipe so you can't see from one end to the other.
The car came around the bend on the wrong side of the road.
5
in football, the curve in which a ball moves when it has been kicked in a particular way:

Examples:

Good players can put bend on the ball.
6
a serious medical condition that divers (= people who swim underwater) get when they come up to the surface of the water too quickly:

Examples:

On the way up, divers stop at various depths in order to prevent the bends.
7
to change the position of your body or a part of your body so that it is no longer straight but curved or forming an angle:

Examples:

[ I always + adv/prep ] She dropped her umbrella and bent down to pick it up.
[ T ] Bend your knees and keep your back straight when lifting heavy objects.
8
a curved path or an angle:

Examples:

a bend in the road

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