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Dent

[dent]

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noun

a hollow or depression in a surface, as from a blow.

a noticeable effect, especially of reduction: to leave a dent in one's savings; a dent in one's pride.

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verb (used with object)

to make a dent in or on; indent: The impact dented the car's fender.

to have the effect of reducing or slightly injuring: The caustic remark dented his ego.

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Dent is one of our favorite verbs.

So is skedaddle. Does it mean:

to spend time idly; loaf.

to run away hurriedly; flee.

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verb (used without object)

to show dents; become indented: Tin dents more easily than steel.

to sink in, making a dent: Nails dent into metal.

Idioms

make a dent, Informal. to cause a person to take heed; make an impression: The doctor told him to stop smoking, but it didn't make a dent.

make a dent in, to show initial progress; pass an initial stage of (work, thought, solving a problem, etc.): I haven't even made a dent in this pile of work.

Origin:
1250–1300; Middle English dente, variant of dint

Related forms

un·dent·ed, adjective

Example Sentences

Dent broke the buckle on the net with one of his monster serves and then helped consult on the repair job.

All of these will make you a more productive researcher and will also make a dent in that research budget.

The infrastructure needed to make a large dent in the world's emissions is daunting.

EXPAND

Dent broke the buckle on the net with one of his monster serves and then helped consult on the repair job.

All of these will make you a more productive researcher and will also make a dent in that research budget.

The infrastructure needed to make a large dent in the world's emissions is daunting.

In those days, that number scarcely made a dent in the large grizzly population.

In protostomes, the first little dent becomes the organism's mouth.

Make some money, put a dent in the python population, and educate the folks.

Some of their agaves looked the worse for it but some made it through without a dent.

Hold ball three to four inches above the flame, moving it around until dent pops out.

Products to help you avoid a parking ticket, fix a dent and diagnose a car's ills.

Taking aim at bullets could put dent in growing gun violence.

Attempts to shift the oil by road and rail have made only a small dent in rising inventories.

But continuing to harvest turtles without some form of monitoring could put a major dent in the reptiles' populations, she said.

If there was enough carbon to burn it might make a dent in global oxygen levels, but there's not.

Seeds that will barely dent when bitten are sufficiently dry.

Tablets have failed to make much of a dent in the marketplace so far.

Spotting them beneath his white clown makeup, he painted a thin black line in the dent on each cheek.

If the tenured can't make a dent in this, then no one can.

It reckons its new rules will boost the economy in the long run and only slightly dent it in the short run.

In the face of drastic dent in fossil fuels and soaring price of them, the hands-off policy reflects economic crash world-wide.

Its mineral crystal is recessed to dodge blows, and the screw-down crown is offset to four o'clock so it won't dent your wrist.

The economy is not growing nearly fast enough to dent unemployment, but help is not forthcoming.

And the fact that there are other measuring systems in use in the world doesn't put a dent in the argument for metric.

The criticism is having an effect, and the curtailment of entertainment visas will dent the problem.

We already knew it was a bad idea, and not likely to make a big dent in our petroleum consumption.

If that scenario plays out, it could put a serious dent in the fundamental statistical basis of national polls.

The global slowdown will dent growth, domestic spending and investment.

We could put a serious dent into usage by adapting to use bidet's as opposed to toilet paper.

The occasional dent or dirt collecting on the hood might mar the paint.

But they will dent a carefully nurtured international image.

But attacking a scientific theory will not even dent it.

But you won't even make a dent in the list of possibilities.

The probe could also dent hedge funds' nascent recovery by causing spooked investors to withdraw their money.

No amount of proof or common sense will even make a dent in their beliefs.

It will also put a huge dent in your whole superhero image.

It could make an exception, but too many exceptions would dent the bank's credibility.

But he also admits to a driving ambition, which an early setback did little to dent.

Penalties have often been big enough to dent profits, even at mammoth corporations.

Self-taught and utterly confi dent in what he knew, he despised what he did not know.

If tax had been deducted, this would have made another huge dent in the total return.

If it is not, more drastic action will be required, which might make a big dent in economic growth.

To make a real dent in unemployment would require a lot more money.

But even this would not seriously dent their capital.

And there are some signs that the temporary shocks may have left a more lasting dent on the psyche of firms and shoppers.

It will take a decade or two before either fuel cells or bioethanol make a significant dent in the oil economy.

COLLAPSE

Dictionary.com Unabridged

noun

a toothlike projection, as a tooth of a gearwheel.

Textiles. the space between two wires through which the warp ends are drawn in the reed of a loom.

Origin:
1545–55; < Middle French < Latin dent- (stem of dēns) tooth

variant of denti- before a vowel: dentin.

dental.

dentist.

dentistry.

Link To Dent

Collins

World English Dictionary

dent¹ (dɛnt)

—n
1.	a hollow or dip in a surface, as one made by pressure or a blow
2.	an appreciable effect, esp of lessening: a dent in our resources

—vb
3.	to impress or be impressed with a dent or dents

[C13 (in the sense: a stroke, blow): variant of dint]

dent² (dɛnt)

—n
1.	a toothlike protuberance, esp the tooth of a sprocket or gearwheel
2.	textiles the space between two wires in a loom through which a warp thread is drawn

[C16: from French: tooth]

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline

Word Origin & History

dent

early 14c., "a strike or blow," dialectal variant of M.E. dint (q.v.); sense of "indentation" first recorded 1560s, apparently influenced by indent.

American Heritage

Medical Dictionary

dent- pref.
Variant of denti-.

American Heritage

Idioms & Phrases

dent

see make a dent in.