Other forms: bents
Bent means no longer straight. A bent nail, a bent fork, the bent aerial on an old car, a bicycle wheel bent by the kerb.
It is also the past tense and past participle of bend, so 'he bent down' and 'the pipe was bent' put the same four letters to different work. Bent ON is a fixed phrase meaning determined: bent on revenge, bent on going out whatever the forecast says. As a noun, a bent is a natural leaning or talent — a mathematical bent, his bent for taking things apart. British slang uses bent for corrupt, especially of police: a bent copper, a bent deal. And keep bent away from bended, which survives in one phrase only: on bended knee.
1adjectivebentCurved or twisted out of its proper straight shape.
“The gate hung badly because the hinge pin was bent.”
synonyms: crooked, buckled, warped
2verbpastPast tense and past participle of bend.
“He bent the wire into a hook and fished the key out.”
3adjectivedeterminedBent on: determined to do something, whatever anyone says.
“She was bent on finishing the wall before it got dark.”
4nounnaturalA natural talent or inclination for something.
“The boy has a practical bent and would be wasted in an office.”
5adjectivedishonestDishonest or corrupt, especially of a police officer (British slang).
“Half the station was bent, and everybody in the neighbourhood knew it.”
Also accepted in games: crooked
Bent is bend with a t stuck on the end, the old way English marked a past before -ed took the job over. Middle English benden gave bente and bent, and the past participle hardened into an adjective you can set in front of a noun. Sent, spent, built and lent were all shaped the same way.
Middle English
bent-
English, today
bent
From Middle English bent-, preterite stem (as in bente, benten, etc.), and Middle English bent, ibent, ybent, past participle forms of Middle English benden (“to bend”). Equivalent to bend + t.
Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA