Bent is the past tense and past participle of bend.
2. adjective
If an object is bent, it is damaged and no longer has its correct shape.
The trees were all bent and twisted from the wind.
Synonyms: misshapen, twisted, angled, bowed More Synonyms of bent
3. adjective
If a person is bent, their body has become curved because of old age or disease.
[written]
...a bent, frail, old man.
Synonyms: stooped, bowed, arched, hunched More Synonyms of bent
4. adjective
If someone is bent on doing something, especially something harmful, they are determined to do it.
[disapproval]
He's bent on suicide. [+ on/upon]
5. singular noun
If you have a bentfor something, you have a natural ability to do it or a natural interest in it.
His bent for natural history directed him towards his first job. [+ for]
6. singular noun [adjective NOUN]
If someone is of a particular bent, they hold a particular set of beliefs.
...economists of a socialist bent.
7. adjective
If you say that someone in a position of responsibility is bent, you mean that they are dishonest or do illegal things.
[British, informal]
...this bent accountant.
8. adjective
Bent is an offensive way of saying that someone is gay.
[British, informal, offensive]
9.
See bent double
More Synonyms of bent
bent in British English1
(bɛnt)
adjective
1.
not straight; curved
2. (foll by on)
fixed (on a course of action); resolved (to); determined (to)
3. slang
a.
dishonest; corrupt
b.
(of goods) stolen
c.
crazy; mad
d. British offensive
homosexual
noun
4.
personal inclination, propensity, or aptitude
5.
capacity of endurance (esp in the phrase to the top of one's bent)
6. civil engineering
a framework placed across a structure to stiffen it
bent in British English2
(bɛnt)
noun
1. short for bentgrass
2.
a stalk of bent grass
3. archaic
any stiff grass or sedge
4. Scottish and Northern England dialect
heath or moorland
Word origin
Old English bionot; related to Old Saxon binet, Old High German binuz rush
bent in American English1
(bɛnt)
verb transitive, verb intransitive
1. pt. & pp. of
bend1
adjective
2.
made curved or crooked; not straight
3.
strongly inclined or determined
with on
bent on going
4.
set in a course; bound
westward bent
5. Slang
a.
dishonest; crooked
b.
eccentric; odd
noun
6.
an inclination; tendency
7.
a natural leaning or tendency; propensity
a bent for music, a criminal bent
8.
a framework transverse to the length of a structure, for supporting lateral as well as vertical loads
SIMILAR WORDS: ˌincliˈnation
Idioms:
bent out of shape
to (or at) the top of one's bent
bent in American English2
(bɛnt)
noun
1.
any of a genus (Agrostis) of dense, low-growing perennial grasses that spread by putting out runners and are often used for lawns and golf greens
: also called ˈbentˌgrass
2.
the stiff flower stalk of certain grasses
3. Chiefly British, Dialectal
a heath; moor
Word origin
ME < OE beonot, bent, a rush < WGmc *binut > Ger binse
Synonyms of 'bent'
misshapen, twisted, angled, bowed
stooped, bowed, arched, hunched
corrupt, crooked, rotten, shady
inclination, ability, taste, facility
More Synonyms of bent
In other languages
bent
British English: bent /bɛnt/ ADJECTIVE
not straight Something that is bent is not straight.
Keep your knees slightly bent.
American English: bent not straight
Arabic: مُنْعَطِف
Brazilian Portuguese: dobrado
Chinese: 弯曲的
Croatian: savijen
Czech: ohnutý
Danish: bøjet
Dutch: krom
European Spanish: doblado
Finnish: taipunut
French: tordu
German: gebeugt
Greek: λυγισμένος
Italian: piegato
Japanese: 曲がった not straight
Korean: 굽은
Norwegian: bøyd
Polish: zgięty
European Portuguese: dobrado
Romanian: îndoit
Russian: изогнутый
Latin American Spanish: doblado
Swedish: böjd
Thai: คดงอ
Turkish: bükülmüş
Ukrainian: вигнутий
Vietnamese: cong
British English: bent /bɛnt/ ADJECTIVE
dishonest If you say that someone in a position of responsibility is bent, you mean that they are dishonest or do illegal things.
...this bent accountant.
American English: crooked dishonest
Arabic: غَيْرُ أَمِيـن
Brazilian Portuguese: desonesto
Chinese: 不诚实的
Croatian: nepošten
Czech: nečestný
Danish: uhæderlig
Dutch: omkoopbaar
European Spanish: corrupto
Finnish: kiero
French: véreux
German: unehrlich
Greek: ανέντιμος
Italian: disonesto
Japanese: 不正直な dishonest
Korean: 부정직한
Norwegian: korrupt
Polish: nieuczciwy
European Portuguese: desonesto
Romanian: corupt
Russian: бесчестный
Latin American Spanish: tramposo
Swedish: oärlig
Thai: โกงกิน
Turkish: namussuz
Ukrainian: крадений
Vietnamese: không trung thực
British English: bent NOUN
If you have a bent for something, you have a natural ability to do it or a natural interest in it.
His bent for natural history directed him towards his first job.
American English: bent
Brazilian Portuguese: inclinação
Chinese: 天生的本领
European Spanish: inclinación
French: dispositions
German: Neigung
Italian: inclinazione
Japanese: 素質
Korean: 소질
European Portuguese: inclinação
Latin American Spanish: inclinación
All related terms of 'bent'
bend
When you bend , you move the top part of your body downwards and forwards . Plants and trees also bend .
hell-bent
If you say that someone is hell-bent on doing something, you are emphasizing that they are determined to do it, even if this causes problems or difficulties for other people.
bent double
If someone is bent double , the top part of their body is leaning forward towards their legs , usually because they are in great pain or because they are laughing a lot . In American English, you can also say that someone is bent over double .
bent out of shape
very angry , upset , or agitated
creeping bent grass
a grass , Agrostis stolonifera , grown as a pasture grass in Europe and North America: roots readily from the stem
to (or at) the top of one's bent
to (or at) the limit of one's capacity or ability
fiorin
a temperate perennial grass , Agrostis stolonifera