verb (used with object)
1.
to straighten from a bent form or position.
2.
to release from the strain of formality, intense effort, etc.; relax: to unbend one's mind.
3.
to release from tension, as a bow.
4.
Nautical.
a.
to loose or untie, as a sail or rope.
b.
to unfasten from spars or stays, as sails.
verb (used without object)
5.
to relax the strictness of formality or ceremony; act in an easy, genial manner: Imagine him unbending!
6.
to become unbent; straighten.
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Unbend
is one of our favorite verbs.
So is fletcherise. Does it mean:
| to introduce subtleties into or argue subtly about. |
| to chew (food) slowly and thoroughly. |
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Link To unbend
Collins
World English Dictionary
unbend (ʌnˈbɛnd) ![[Click for IPA pronunciation guide]](http://static.sfdict.com/dictstatic/g/d/dictionary_questionbutton_default.gif) | |
| —vb , -bends, -bending, -bent | |
| 1. | to release or be released from the restraints of formality and ceremony |
| 2. | informal to relax (the mind) or (of the mind) to become relaxed |
| 3. | to become or be made straightened out from an originally bent shape or position |
| 4. | (tr) nautical |
| a. to remove (a sail) from a stay, mast, yard, etc | |
| b. to untie (a rope, etc) or cast (a cable) loose | |
| un'bendable | |
| —adj | |
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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2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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