pent
verb
a simple past tense and past participle of pen.
pent
1 American
[pent]
/ pɛnt /
verb
adjective
pent
2
American
[pent]
/ pɛnt /
noun
Pent.
3
American
abbreviation
pent
British
/ pɛnt /
verb
Etymology
Origin of pent1
First recorded in 1535–45; late Middle English pente, pent, past participle of obsolete pend, variant of pennen “to enclose, confine”; cf. pen 2
Origin of pent2
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.
“There isn’t a lot of pent up inflationary pressure in the economy,” Macklem said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 18, 2026
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 ● Nov. 19, 2025
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 ● Nov. 5, 2025
Toxic energy and animosity get pent up, and carried out into the yard.
From Slate ● Oct. 8, 2025
I could feel it, and smell it, pent up there, behind the clouds.
From "Rebecca" by Daphne du Maurier
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.
