Crossword clues for unbend
Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English
The Collaborative International Dictionary
Unbend \Un*bend"\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Unbent; p. pr. & vb. n. Unbending.] [1st pref. un- + bend.]
To free from flexure; to make, or allow to become, straight; to loosen; as, to unbend a bow.
-
A remit from a strain or from exertion; to set at ease for a time; to relax; as, to unbend the mind from study or care.
You do unbend your noble strength.
--Shak. -
(Naut.)
To unfasten, as sails, from the spars or stays to which they are attached for use.
To cast loose or untie, as a rope.
Unbend \Un*bend"\, v. i.
To cease to be bent; to become straight or relaxed.
To relax in exertion, attention, severity, or the like; hence, to indulge in mirth or amusement.
Douglas Harper's Etymology Dictionary
mid-13c., "relax a bow by unstringing it," from un- (2) "reverse, opposite of" + bend (v.). Intransitive sense from 1746. Figurative meaning "to become genial, relax" (1748) has a sense opposite to that of unbending "inflexible, obstinate" (1680s), which does not derive from the bow-stringing image.
Wiktionary
vb. 1 To free from flexure; to make, or allow to become, straight; to loosen. 2 To remit from a strain or from exertion; to set at ease for a time; to relax. 3 To unfasten, as sails, from the spars or stays to which they are attached for use. 4 To cast loose or untie, as a rope. 5 To cease to be bent; to become straight or relaxed. 6 To relax in exertion, attention, severity, or the like; hence, to indulge in mirth or amusement.
WordNet
v. straighten up or out; make straight [syn: straighten] [ant: bend]
unfasten, as a sail, from a spar or a stay
free from flexure; "unbend a bow" [ant: flex]
make less tight; "relax the tension on the rope" [syn: relax]
become less tense, rest, or take one's ease; "He relaxed in the hot tub"; "Let's all relax after a hard day's work" [syn: relax, loosen up, unwind, decompress, slow down] [ant: tense]
release from mental strain, tension, or formality; "unbend the mind from absorbing too much information"
[also: unbent]
Usage examples of "unbend".
If the Portreeve of Usk had been enabled, by a Charter of King John, to burn alive in Porthycarne Street any persons to whose opinions he objected, I should be all in favour of a Limiting Clause: earnest Young Liberals, Unbending Young Conservatives, and a few other people being alone excepted from its benefits.
Harris had initially scorned the idea, though he had unbent sufficiently to suggest that maybe an Indian volunteer could be found who would stand a much greater chance of remaining undetected in the enemy capital, but Baird had vigorously defended his choice.
He unbent himself, his whole mind was in undress, and behind the veneer of good-fellowship I seemed to see a very cold arrogant soul.
He unbent to me as a relief to his long spiritual tension, and let me see the innermost dreams of his heart.
Arithon unbent his fists to peel back the hair slicked to his forehead and temples.
While in the public eye of his troop captains, he had been the unbent picture of royal pride.
With a grin at the old man who was unbent by the passage of years, he sat on the bed and held out his hands for a trencher.
She unbent enough to smile at Leonard, and after that, every time Lisa finished another book, they went to some place with white tablecloths and gourmet food.
She had charmed their coach driver so much that the drab man had unbent enough to smile at her whenever she spoke to him.
Schatel unbent enough to show them a couch near the loan department where they could wait and watch unobtrusively.
As with thumbs unbent they glared, Till the prefect gave the signal That his life should not be spared.
DESK CLERK at the Hotel Grandview demanded four pieces of ID, then returned Burke his checkbook and unbent sufficiently to warn him and Sarah that NOAA had put this part of the coast under a tornado watch.
Snow, who could look so austere, had unbent sufficiently to save the best morsels for Horace.
If his eyebrows were not so fierce and his nose not so determinedly patrician, he might be considered handsome, she supposed, but not with such an unbending, unconciliating manner.
However, when my lady had fallen asleep, which she very soon did, and she heard herself addressed in a cautious undervoice, she unbent a little.