I. ˈdint noun
( -s )
Etymology: Middle English, from Old English dynt; akin to Old Norse dyttr blow, detta to fall, Albanian gdhent I chop wood
1. archaic : blow , stroke
sharp-smitten with the dint of armed heels — Alfred Tennyson
: a clap of thunder
2. : force , power
the dint of pity — Shakespeare
— now used chiefly in the phrase by dint of
by dint of patience and hard work … he gained the top of the mountain — S.E.White
3. : a mark left by a blow or pressure : dent , notch
produced a deep dint in the car fender
: a small hollow or indentation : impression , imprint
does not make any deep dint in their minds — Walter Moberly
4. dialect Britain : a jarring blow : attack
5. Scotland : a momentary chance
II. transitive verb
( -ed/-ing/-s )
Etymology: Middle English dinten, from dint (I)
1. obsolete : strike , beat
2. : to make a mark or cavity on or in by a blow or by pressure
a financial nut not even a sledge hammer would dint — J.H.Gray
3. : to impress or drive in with force
dinted the pointed nails into his own finger tips — Clemence Dane
: imprint