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.
Australian migration agent Mark Welch said there was a pent up demand following Brexit, which was combined with those who weren't able to go because of Covid-19.
From BBC ● Dec. 27, 2025
And when Anisimova’s final return of serve flew wide, Sabalenka released all of the pent up tension by sinking to her knees and weeping onto the court.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 6, 2025
The result is a pent up demand that lures workers to come illegally.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 25, 2025
“Post-COVID, we got this big influx of revenge travel, where everyone’s so pent up indoors and they’re just like, ‘Get me out there,’ ” McElroy explains.
From Slate ● Oct. 27, 2024
There was a hundred years of speech, pent up, bursting to erupt.
From "Impossible Creatures" by Katherine Rundell
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.
