distend
verb (used with or without object)
to expand by stretching, as something hollow or elastic.
had distended
-
past perfectof distend.past perfect
Used to express a completed action that took place before another specific past action occurred.
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.
Mrs Cook's symptoms worsened over the following months: her appetite "diminished", she needed to urinate more and by September 2021 her stomach had distended to the point that she looked pregnant.
From BBC ● Mar. 29, 2025
Several weeks later, the first body was autopsied: Tiny clots and dead cells littered the capillaries of the lungs, and inflammation had distended blood vessels supplying every organ in the body.
From Science Magazine ● Jun. 2, 2020
His nostrils, as it seemed to Swithin, had distended in an unpleasant fashion; and a wholly unnecessary raucousness invaded his voice.
From Villa Rubein, and other stories by John Galsworthy
It was as if the Creator had determined on granting this man an unusual supply of brains, and had then packed them in until the pressure had distended the frontal lobes.
From A Republic Without a President and Other Stories by Herbert D. (Herbert Dickinson) Ward
