dent

/dɛnt/

/dɛnt/

Other forms: dented; dents; denting

A dent is a gouge or hollow that's left in a surface after some kind of blow. If you hit a soup pot with a hammer, it will leave a dent.

Car accidents, whether they're serious or just fender benders, often result in dents. If you fall off your bike, you may get a dent in your helmet, and a mishandled package might be delivered to your door full of dents. There's also a figurative kind of dent, a reduction in amount: "You barely made a dent in that oatmeal — aren't you hungry?" Dent comes from Middle English, originally a variation on dint, "a blow dealt in fighting."

Definitions of dent

1. noun

   an impression in a surface (as made by a blow)
   synonyms: ding, divot, gouge, nick

   types:

   dig

   a small gouge (as in the cover of a book)

   type of:

   blemish, defect, mar

   a mark or flaw that spoils the appearance of something (especially on a person's body)
2. noun

   a depression scratched or carved into a surface
   synonyms: incision, prick, scratch, slit

   types:

   score, scotch

   a slight surface cut (especially a notch that is made to keep a tally)

   type of:

   depression, impression, imprint

   a concavity in a surface produced by pressing
3. noun

   an appreciable consequence (especially a lessening)
   “it made a dent in my bank account”

   type of:

   consequence, effect, event, issue, outcome, result, upshot

   a phenomenon that follows and is caused by some previous phenomenon
4. verb

   make a depression into
   “The bicycle dented my car”

   synonyms: indent

   type of:

   bend, deform, flex, turn, twist

   cause (a plastic object) to assume a crooked or angular form