pent
1 Americanverb
adjective
noun
abbreviation
verb
"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012Etymology
Origin of pent1
First recorded in 1535–45; late Middle English pente, pent, past participle of obsolete pend, variant of pennen “to enclose, confine”; pen 2
Origin of pent1
By shortening
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Most everyone is pent up, ready to pop.
From Los Angeles Times
Aswan remembers taking her driving theory test: "I got so pent up about passing it first time that when I failed by a couple of points I've never tried to get it back."
From BBC
Having been pent up for so long, friendless and homesick, they go wild in the safety of Luna’s generic apartment, which scenic designer Tanya Orellana furnishes with makeshift graduate school touches.
From Los Angeles Times
Beyond that, many researchers have tried to put a value on what is sometimes called “pent up” demand or “missing households.”
From Los Angeles Times
The result is a pent up demand that lures workers to come illegally.
From Los Angeles Times
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
