1
: a depression or hollow made by a blow or by pressure
2
: an appreciable impression or effect often made against resistance
hasn't made a dent in the problem
specifically
: a weakening or lessening effect
costs that have made a dent in the budget
Synonyms
Examples of dent in a Sentence
Verb
I'm afraid I dented the wall pretty badly when I was hammering in that nail.
Many of the cans were badly dented.
Some types of metal dent more easily than others.
The team's confidence has been dented by a recent series of losses.
Noun (1)
there was a big dent in the car's hood where something had hit it
a little belt-tightening would at least make a small dent in our credit-card debt
Recent Examples on the Web
Reuters, CNN, 2 Nov. 2024
The surge in the past two weeks has seen Chinese equities reassert their influence over broader emerging-market gauges, and dented the performance of fund managers who had been running underweight positions in the biggest developing-nation economy.
—Eleanor Pringle, Fortune, 6 Oct. 2024
Russ Mitchell, Los Angeles Times, 26 Nov. 2024
Problem is, very few topical over-the-counter serums and moisturizers made a dent in smoothing out the prominent lines.
—Sarah Kinonen, Allure, 26 Nov. 2024
See all Example Sentences for dent 
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Verb
Insurance underwriting profit fell 69%, dented by rising claims, $565 million of losses from Helene, and a bankruptcy court settlement related to defunct talc supplier Whittaker Clark & Daniels.
—Reuters, CNN, 2 Nov. 2024
The surge in the past two weeks has seen Chinese equities reassert their influence over broader emerging-market gauges, and dented the performance of fund managers who had been running underweight positions in the biggest developing-nation economy.
—Eleanor Pringle, Fortune, 6 Oct. 2024
Noun
The state is making a dent by helping to finance the move to cleaner energy.
—Russ Mitchell, Los Angeles Times, 26 Nov. 2024
Problem is, very few topical over-the-counter serums and moisturizers made a dent in smoothing out the prominent lines.
—Sarah Kinonen, Allure, 26 Nov. 2024
See all Example Sentences for dent
Dictionary Entries Near dent
Cite this Entry
“Dent.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/dent. Accessed 2 Dec. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
dent
1 of 2 verb1
: to make a dent in or on
2
: to become marked by a dent
dent
2 of 2 noun1
: a notch or hollow made by a blow or by pressure
2
a
: an impression or effect made usually against resistance
that purchase made a big dent in our savings
b
: noticeable progress
made a dent in our pile of work
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