indentation

American  

[in-den-tay-shuhn] / ˌɪn dɛnˈteɪ ʃən /

noun

• indentations
  plural

1. a cut, notch, or deep recess.

   various bays and indentations.

2. a series of incisions or notches.

   the indentation of a maple leaf.

3. a notching or being notched.

4. indention.

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indentation British  

/ ˌɪndɛnˈteɪʃən /

noun

1. a hollowed, notched, or cut place, as on an edge or on a coastline

2. a series of hollows, notches, or cuts

3. the act of indenting or the condition of being indented

4. Also called: indention, indent. the leaving of space or the amount of space left between a margin and the start of an indented line

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indentation Cultural  

1. A space left between the left-hand margin of a line of type or handwriting and the beginning of a sentence or quotation. The beginning of a paragraph is usually indented.

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• indentations
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of indentation

First recorded in 1715–25; indent ¹ + -ation

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Explanation

An indentation is a notch, cut, or dent in something. If you take a hammer to a piece of metal, you will make a series of indentations. The dent in indentation shares a root with your dentist, and an indentation is basically like a tooth mark. Except some "teeth" are larger than others — a meteorite leaves a huge indentation in the ground, just as a sharp pencil could make a tiny indentation in your finger. You can talk about conceptual indentation, too. Loving the novel Anna Karenina might make an indentation in your general aversion to reading. It’s that’s good.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

indentation indentations

The researchers then tested the jaws using several indentation depths.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 16, 2026

Rachel, who does not want the BBC to use her surname, said an indentation in her abdomen had been picked up during a regular colonoscopy for another condition.

From BBC ● Apr. 8, 2026

He finishes with special tools that carve out the metal and leave an indentation.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 9, 2025

For air-fried burgers, flatten your patties as much as possible and press an indentation in the center to prevent them from puffing up.

From Salon ● Mar. 8, 2025

I’d been clutching it in my fist so tightly, it left a little indentation on my palm when I opened my hand to show it to her.

From "The Lions of Little Rock" by Kristin Levine

Nervous consumers are also avoiding berries and herbs, which have indentations that can trap microscopic parasites, though they haven’t been implicated in the recent outbreak.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 31, 2026

He mostly cut freehand, sometimes using indentations he made with his fingernails as outlines, then dyed his creations with green, pink, red and yellow pigments.

From New York Times ● Mar. 20, 2024

Ocean Spray cranberry sauce, coaxed out of the can with its ringed indentations intact.

From Salon ● Nov. 23, 2023

Long, narrow indentations marked the graves of fallen logs that vanished in smoke.

From Seattle Times ● Oct. 25, 2023

When he did, he felt the curved indentations, the places carved here and there with names: Tank.

From "Son" by Lois Lowry

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