make/put a dent

idiom

: to decrease something slightly or to make something somewhat weaker

We tried our best to fix the problem, but nothing we did seems to have made a dent.

—often + in

It's going to take more than a new law to make a dent in the city's drug crime.

a vacation that won't put too big a dent in your wallet

Examples of make/put a dent in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

To make a dent in the U.S.-Chinese trade imbalance, the withholding rate needs, at least, to revert to that specified in the Internal Revenue Code—30 percent. —Alex Raskolnikov, Foreign Affairs, 19 Feb. 2025

The play has also put a dent in Barkley’s numbers — the 235-pound running back often takes the Eagles right up to the goal line, then sees the Tush Push called. —Shaun Goodwin, Idaho Statesman, 7 Feb. 2025

Along the way, the Beatles reversed a trend of rock ‘n’ acts from the U.K. failing to make a dent on the American music scene, leading a British Revolution that later included storied bands like the Rolling Stones and the Who. —Jorge L. Ortiz, USA TODAY, 7 Feb. 2025

And preliminary data suggests these changes may have already put a dent in rat complaints, Richardson said. —Benji Jones, Vox, 31 Jan. 2025