*SET-U

English word origin

Etymology of bend

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *bʰendʰ-der. Proto-Germanic *bindaną Proto-Indo-European *-yeti Proto-Indo-European *-éyeti Proto-Germanic *-janą Proto-Germanic *bandijaną Proto-West Germanic *bandijan Old English ben

1 source sectionExtended source reportWiktionary original ↗
In this entry · 1 source sections

The source etymologies

Wiktionary via Kaikki / Wiktextract

The source reports below are imported and unreviewed by *SET-U. Separate numbered origins and differing source variants are preserved; agreement within this extraction is not independent corroboration.

Unnumbered source etymology

Original entry ↗
noun

A curve. · Any of the various knots which join the ends of two lines. · A severe condition caused by excessively quick decompression, causing bubbles of nitrogen to form in the blood; decompression sickness. · One of the honourable ordinaries formed by two diagonal lines drawn from the dexter chief to the sinister base; it generally occupies a fifth part of the shield if uncharged, but if charged one third.

verb

To cause (something) to change its shape into a curve, by physical force, chemical action, or any other means. · To become curved. · To cause to change direction. · To change direction.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *bʰendʰ-der. Proto-Germanic *bindaną Proto-Indo-European *-yeti Proto-Indo-European *-éyeti Proto-Germanic *-janą Proto-Germanic *bandijaną Proto-West Germanic *bandijan Old English bendan Middle English benden English bend From Middle English benden, from Old English bendan (“to bind or bend (a bow), fetter, restrain”), from Proto-West Germanic *bandijan, from Proto-Germanic *bandijaną (“to bend”), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰendʰ- (“to bind, tie”). Cognate with Middle High German benden (“to fetter”), Danish bænde (“to bend”), Norwegian bende (“to bend”), Faroese benda (“to bend, inflect”), Icelandic benda (“to bend”). Related to bind, band, bond.

Relationships mentioned by the source

These are extracted mentions, not a timeline or a verified sequence of immediate parents.

  • Root classification mention*bʰendʰ-ine-pro
  • Inherited-form mentionbendenenm
  • Inherited-form mentionbendanang · to bind or bend (a bow), fetter, restrain
  • Inherited-form mention*bandijangmw-pro
  • Inherited-form mention*bandijanągem-pro · to bend
  • Derivation mention*bʰendʰ-ine-pro · to bind, tie
  • Cognate mentionbendengmh · to fetter
  • Cognate mentionbændeda · to bend
  • Cognate mentionbendeno · to bend
  • Cognate mentionbendafo · to bend, inflect
  • Cognate mentionbendais · to bend

This page abbreviates 17 auxiliary source items. The etymology narrative is not shortened. Omission counts are available in the audit fields below; consult the original for complete auxiliary material.

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

{
  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "etymon",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": ":inh",
        "3": "enm:benden<ety:inh<ang:bendan>>",
        "tree": "1"
      },
      "expansion": "Etymology tree\nProto-Indo-European *bʰendʰ-der.\nProto-Germanic *bindaną\nProto-Indo-European *-yeti\nProto-Indo-European *-éyeti\nProto-Germanic *-janą\nProto-Germanic *bandijaną\nProto-West Germanic *bandijan\nOld English bendan\nMiddle English benden\nEnglish bend\n[Appendix:Glossary#derived_terms|Derived]] from\", \"terms\" : [ { \"children\" : [ ], \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-Indo-European\", \"term\" : \"*bʰendʰ-\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"ine-pro\" } ], \"keyword\" : \"derived\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-Germanic\", \"term\" : \"*bindaną\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"gem-pro\" }, { \"id\" : \"causative\", \"children\" : [ { \"terms\" : [ { \"id\" : \"causative suffix\", \"children\" : [ { \"terms\" : [ { \"id\" : \"forming verbs\", \"children\" : [ ], \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-Indo-European\", \"term\" : \"*-yeti\", \"lang\" : \"ine-pro\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"From\", \"keyword\" : \"from\" } ], \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-Indo-European\", \"term\" : \"*-éyeti\", \"lang\" : \"ine-pro\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-Germanic\", \"term\" : \"*-janą\", \"lang\" : \"gem-pro\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"From\", \"is_group\" : true, \"keyword\" : \"affix\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-Germanic\", \"term\" : \"*bandijaną\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"gem-pro\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-West Germanic\", \"term\" : \"*bandijan\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"gmw-pro\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Old English\", \"term\" : \"bendan\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"ang\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Middle English\", \"term\" : \"benden\", \"status\" : \"inline\", \"lang\" : \"enm\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"English\", \"term\" : \"bend\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"en\" }\" data-lang=\"en\" data-title=\"bend\">"
    },
    {
      "name": "root",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ine-pro",
        "3": "*bʰendʰ-"
      },
      "expansion": ""
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "enm",
        "3": "benden"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle English benden"
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ang",
        "3": "bendan",
        "t": "to bind or bend (a bow), fetter, restrain"
      },
      "expansion": "Old English bendan (“to bind or bend (a bow), fetter, restrain”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "gmw-pro",
        "3": "*bandijan"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-West Germanic *bandijan"
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "gem-pro",
        "3": "*bandijaną",
        "t": "to bend"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-Germanic *bandijaną (“to bend”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ine-pro",
        "3": "*bʰendʰ-",
        "t": "to bind, tie"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-Indo-European *bʰendʰ- (“to bind, tie”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "gmh",
        "2": "benden",
        "t": "to fetter"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle High German benden (“to fetter”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "da",
        "2": "bænde",
        "t": "to bend"
      },
      "expansion": "Danish bænde (“to bend”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "no",
        "2": "bende",
        "t": "to bend"
      },
      "expansion": "Norwegian bende (“to bend”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "fo",
        "2": "benda",
        "t": "to bend, inflect"
      },
      "expansion": "Faroese benda (“to bend, inflect”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "is",
        "2": "benda",
        "t": "to bend"
      },
      "expansion": "Icelandic benda (“to bend”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "etymon",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": ":inh",
        "3": "enm:benden<ety:inh<ang:bendan>>",
        "tree": "1"
      },
      "expansion": "Etymology tree\nProto-Indo-European *bʰendʰ-der.\nProto-Germanic *bindaną\nProto-Indo-European *-yeti\nProto-Indo-European *-éyeti\nProto-Germanic *-janą\nProto-Germanic *bandijaną\nProto-West Germanic *bandijan\nOld English bendan\nMiddle English benden\nEnglish bend"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "*bʰendʰ-",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/bʰendʰ-"
    ],
    [
      "*bindaną",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic/bindaną"
    ],
    [
      "*-yeti",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/-yeti#Proto-Indo-European:_forming_verbs"
    ],
    [
      "*-éyeti",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/-éyeti#Proto-Indo-European:_causative_suffix"
    ],
    [
      "*-janą",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic/-janą#Proto-Germanic:_causative"
    ],
    [
      "*bandijaną",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic/bandijaną"
    ],
    [
      "*bandijan",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-West Germanic/bandijan"
    ],
    [
      "bendan",
      "bendan#Old_English"
    ],
    [
      "benden",
      "benden#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "benden",
      "benden#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "bendan",
      "bendan#Old_English"
    ],
    [
      "*bandijan",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-West Germanic/bandijan"
    ],
    [
      "*bandijaną",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic/bandijaną"
    ],
    [
      "*bʰendʰ-",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/bʰendʰ-"
    ],
    [
      "benden",
      "benden#Middle_High_German"
    ],
    [
      "bænde",
      "bænde#Danish"
    ],
    [
      "bende",
      "bende#Norwegian"
    ],
    [
      "benda",
      "benda#Faroese"
    ],
    [
      "benda",
      "benda#Icelandic"
    ],
    [
      "bind",
      "bind#English"
    ],
    [
      "band",
      "band#English"
    ],
    [
      "bond",
      "bond#English"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "A curve.",
        "Any of the various knots which join the ends of two lines.",
        "A severe condition caused by excessively quick decompression, causing bubbles of nitrogen to form in the blood; decompression sickness.",
        "One of the honourable ordinaries formed by two diagonal lines drawn from the dexter chief to the sinister base; it generally occupies a fifth part of the shield if uncharged, but if charged one third."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "in-plural"
      ],
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      "rawRecordSha256": "41ac49c9eef88f894e166eadbf6d7fee2b263459379a564c4eba4cf2bfa5aeaf",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 29971
    },
    {
      "pos": "verb",
      "glosses": [
        "To cause (something) to change its shape into a curve, by physical force, chemical action, or any other means.",
        "To become curved.",
        "To cause to change direction.",
        "To change direction."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "transitive",
        "intransitive"
      ],
      "recordId": "d5b2fd0d7198d6c0d6772ffa6309cfb45c26578421c7181d2dfc27424dbfb637",
      "rawRecordSha256": "7df81da42804007595197de4aae08eb77e7528a592af57f5b339660097a19388",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 29970
    }
  ],
  "omittedAuxiliaryFields": {
    "templates": 0,
    "links": 0,
    "references": 0,
    "descendants": 0,
    "lexicalRecords": 0,
    "lexicalSenses": 17,
    "glosses": 0
  }
}

Where this record stops

This page does not supply an independently verified sound-change sequence, first-use manuscript or complete family tree unless a cited analysis explicitly establishes one. Missing detail here is a limit of this record—not a claim that humanity knows nothing more.

An older meaning does not determine what a word must mean today. Follow the sources, preserve disagreements, and keep ancestry separate from interpretation.

Contribute located evidence for bend →

Source and snapshot

Imported from Wiktionary contributors; extracted by Tatu Ylonen / Wiktextract / Kaikki.org. Selected fields are reformatted and grouped; wording, source identity and etymology sections are retained. CC-BY-SA-4.0 applies to the imported source material.

Dump: 2026-10-01 · Extracted: 2026-10-30. These are snapshot dates, not the word’s first attestation or the page’s revision date.

Source entry and bibliography ↗Wiktionary revision history ↗Acquisition and rights ledger
Machine-source provenance
Source SHA-256
5ff2c072f8099f2d2ce484bd6957bf179f046d2ad37bc36555edf8bb84cb5291
Import run
73216b9a9b78ed3830994bf853103716f5a4dc57099e371e9f8fdc468facca26
Permanent entry ID
w-YmVuZA