dent en · NOUN · etymology 1
Pronunciation
- (Southern-England) audio
- /dɛnt/ (UK, US)
- dĕnt (UK, US)
Etymology
From Middle English dent, dente, dint (“a blow; strike; dent”), from Old English dynt (“blow, strike, the mark or noise of a blow”), from Proto-Germanic *duntiz (“a blow”). Akin to Old Norse dyntr (“dint”). Doublet of dint.
Meanings
-
A shallow deformation in the surface of an object, produced by an impact.
The crash produced a dent in the left side of the car.
-
(figuratively) A minor effect made upon something.
"Case Of You" (#67, 1980), a single on the Scotti Brothers label, was Frank's first chart dent.
1990, Wayne Jancik, The Billboard Book of One-Hit Wonders, →ISBN, page 392:to make a dent
The transitoriness perhaps makes viral content the most representative form of culture in the twenty-first century: an era of vast quantities, deep specificity, and breakneck speed, where few individual artifacts, artworks, or conventions leave a dent in society or bend the curve of history.
2022, W. David Marx, chapter 10, in Status and Culture, Viking, →ISBN:
- A type of maize/corn with a relatively soft outer hull, and a soft type of starch that shrinks at maturity to leave an indentation in the surface of the kernel.
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(broadly, informal) A sudden negative change, such as loss, damage, weakening, consumption or diminution, especially one produced by an external force, event or action
That purchase put a bit of a dent in my wallet.
Andy Carroll's first goals since his £35m move to Liverpool put a dent in Manchester City's Champions League hopes as they were emphatically swept aside at Anfield.
2011 April 11, Phil McNulty, “Liverpool 3 - 0 Man City”, in BBC Sport:
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| dents | Number=Plur | lexicographic |
Deriveds
put a dent in the universe · indent · dent corn · scratch-and-dent
Translations (55)
de Einbuchtung (shallow deformation in the surface) · bg вдлъбнатина (shallow deformation in the surface) · no bulk (shallow deformation in the surface) · he מַכָּה (shallow deformation in the surface) · el κοίλωμα (shallow deformation in the surface) · cs prohlubenina (shallow deformation in the surface) · de Beule (shallow deformation in the surface) · no bungel (shallow deformation in the surface) · uk я́мка (shallow deformation in the surface) · ro teșitură (shallow deformation in the surface) · uk вм'я́тина (shallow deformation in the surface) · es abolladura (shallow deformation in the surface) · ota چوقور (shallow deformation in the surface) · it ammaccatura (shallow deformation in the surface) · gl crocada (shallow deformation in the surface) · nl deuk (shallow deformation in the surface) · dv ގޮނބި (shallow deformation in the surface) · fi lommo (shallow deformation in the surface) · es bolladura (shallow deformation in the surface) · hu horpadás (shallow deformation in the surface) · th รอยบุ๋ม (shallow deformation in the surface) · pt amolgadela (shallow deformation in the surface) · tr çökme (shallow deformation in the surface) · ka ფოსო (shallow deformation in the surface) · fi kolhu (shallow deformation in the surface) · fr bosse (shallow deformation in the surface) · gl citra (shallow deformation in the surface) · pt amassado (shallow deformation in the surface) · bg щърбел (shallow deformation in the surface) · sv buckla (shallow deformation in the surface) · tl piing (shallow deformation in the surface) · tr oyuk (shallow deformation in the surface) · el βαθούλωμα (shallow deformation in the surface) · gl amolegadura (shallow deformation in the surface) · gl croca (shallow deformation in the surface) · cs důlek (shallow deformation in the surface) · pl wgniecenie (shallow deformation in the surface) · cy tolc (shallow deformation in the surface) · es abollón (shallow deformation in the surface) · cs promáčklina (shallow deformation in the surface) · ca bony (shallow deformation in the surface) · nl bluts (shallow deformation in the surface) · de Delle (shallow deformation in the surface) · ja 凹み (shallow deformation in the surface) · nl buts (shallow deformation in the surface) · de Vertiefung (shallow deformation in the surface) · sh uleknuće (shallow deformation in the surface) · sh udubina (shallow deformation in the surface) · ru вмя́тина (shallow deformation in the surface) · th รอยบุบ (shallow deformation in the surface) · jra jĭt (shallow deformation in the surface) · sl vdrtina (shallow deformation in the surface) · vi vết lõm (shallow deformation in the surface) · sh udubljenje (shallow deformation in the surface) · tr göçük (shallow deformation in the surface)