dent
/dɛnt/
Word Rarity
Rare
Frequency: 3.67 in modern English
5
Scrabble Score
4
Letters
1
Syllables
4
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
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.
noun
A sudden negative change, such as loss, damage, weakening, consumption or diminution, especially one produced by an external force, event or action
Informal
noun
A tooth, as of a card, a gear wheel, etc.
Example Sentences
- "The crash produced a dent in the left side of the car."
- "to make a dent"
- ""Case Of You" (#67, 1980), a single on the Scotti Brothers label, was Frank's first chart 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."
- "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."
Etymology
Origin
Word Breakdown
- Root: dent, dynt, *duntiz, dēns
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /dɛnt/
- British English: /dɛnt/