Definition of 'tend'
Word forms: 3rd person singular present tense tends
, present participle tending
, past tense, past participle tended
4. verb
5. verb
Collins COBUILD Advanced Learner’s Dictionary. Copyright © HarperCollins Publishers
British English pronunciation
American English pronunciation
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Word Frequency
tend in British English 1
verb (when intr, usually foll by to or towards)
1. (when tr, takes an infinitive)
children tend to prefer sweets to meat
2. (intransitive)
the party atmosphere tends to hilarity
Collins English Dictionary. Copyright © HarperCollins Publishers
Word origin
C14: from Old French tendre, from Latin tendere to stretch
Word Frequency
tend in British English 2
verb
Collins English Dictionary. Copyright © HarperCollins Publishers
Word origin
C14: variant of attendWord Frequency
tend in American English 1
verb transitive
1.
to tend plants or animals, to tend the sick
verb intransitive
4.
to pay attention; attend
Idioms:
Webster’s New World College Dictionary, 4th Edition. Copyright © 2010 by
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. All rights reserved.
Word Frequency
tend in American English 2
verb intransitive
Webster’s New World College Dictionary, 4th Edition. Copyright © 2010 by
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. All rights reserved.
Word Frequency
tend in American English 1
(tend)
intransitive verb
1.
The particles tend to unite
2.
He tends to be overly optimistic
Her religious philosophy tends toward pantheism
3.
to lead or conduce, as to some result or resulting condition
measures tending to improved working conditions
Governments are tending toward democracy
4.
to be inclined to or have a tendency toward a particular quality, state, or degree
This wine tends toward the sweet side
5. (of a journey, course, road, etc.) (usually fol. by to, toward, etc.)
to lead or be directed in a particular direction
a path tending toward the beach
Most material © 2005, 1997, 1991 by Penguin Random House LLC. Modified entries © 2019
by Penguin Random House LLC and HarperCollins Publishers Ltd
Word origin
[1300–50; ME tenden ‹ MF tendre ‹ L tendere to stretch, extend, proceed]Word Frequency
tend in American English 2
(tend)
transitive verb
3. Nautical
to handle or attend to (a rope)
Most material © 2005, 1997, 1991 by Penguin Random House LLC. Modified entries © 2019
by Penguin Random House LLC and HarperCollins Publishers Ltd
Word origin
[1300–50; ME tenden, aph. var. of attend]Examples of 'tend' in a sentence
tend
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In other languages
tend
British English: tend
/tɛnd/ VERB
If something tends to happen, it usually happens or it happens often.
I tend to forget things.
- American English: tend /ˈtɛnd/
- Arabic: يَنْزَعُ إِلَى
- Brazilian Portuguese: tender
- Chinese: 倾向于
- Croatian: biti sklon nečemu
- Czech: mít tendenci
- Danish: have tendens til
- Dutch: neigen
- European Spanish: tender
- Finnish: olla taipuvainen johonkin
- French: avoir tendance à
- German: tendieren
- Greek: τείνω
- Italian: tendere
- Japanese: 傾向がある
- Korean: 경향이 있다
- Norwegian: føre
- Polish: skłonić się
- European Portuguese: tender
- Romanian: a avea o tendință spre
- Russian: клониться
- Latin American Spanish: tender
- Swedish: vårda
- Thai: โน้มเอียง
- Turkish: eğilim göstermek
- Ukrainian: мати тенденцію
- Vietnamese: có xu hướng
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Definition of tend from the Collins English Dictionary
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