BEND

[verb] [past:] bent - to (cause to) curveI bent down and picked up the gold necklace lying on the road. [I]Now, bend forward/over and touch your toes! [I]Make sure you bend your knees and keep your back straight when you're picking up heavy objects. [T]The trees were bending in the wind. [I]The road bends to the left after the first set of traffic lights. [I]After her fall she complained that she couldn't bend her leg properly. [T]I dropped the fork and bent it. [T](figurative) The local council was forced to bend to public pressure (= it had to change a course of action because of general opinion). [I]See also bent.To bend the law/rules is to break the rules in a way that is considered to be unimportant or not harmful.Can't you bend the rules a little? I was only a few minutes late.(informal) To bend someone's ear is to talk too much, esp. about problems.He's a real nuisance, he's always trying to bend my ear about the difficulties he has at work.He was bent double (= bending forward) because he was laughing so much.