Word.ws English Dictionary

make a dent

make a dent verb: to make an impression; to have an effect on; to chip away at.

Verb

make a dent (third-person singular simple present makes a dent, present participle making a dent, simple past and past participle made a dent)

  1. (figuratively) To make an impression; to have an effect on; to chip away at.
    • If an actor doesn't have a point of view, he doesn't make a dent. And I mean to make a dent.1938 December 18, Bosley Crowther, quoting John Garfield, “A man who means to make a dent”, in The New York Times, →ISSN
    • But I am not yet persuaded that Clintonomics will make much of a dent in the persistent problems of unemployment in the U.S. economy.1992 December 6, David M. Gordon, “Clinton May Fall Short on Easing Unemployment”, in Los Angeles Times, page D2
  2. Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see make, a, dent.

Examples of make a dent in a sentence

  • Clinton's budget plan on social needs will barely make a dent [title]1999 February 4, Michael M. Weinstein, “Clinton's budget plan on social needs will barely make a dent”, in The New York Times:
  • Come down here and make a dent in the universe.2011, Walter Isaacson, quoting Steve Jobs, Steve Jobs, New York: Simon & Schuster, →ISBN, page 94:

Forms of make a dent

third-person singular presentmakes a dent
present participlemaking a dent
past participlemade a dent
pastmade a dent
alternative formleave a dent
alternative formput a dent

Questions about make a dent

What does make a dent mean?
Make a dent means to make an impression; to have an effect on; to chip away at.
How do you use make a dent in a sentence?
Clinton's budget plan on social needs will barely make a dent [title]
What part of speech is make a dent?
Make a dent is a verb.
What is the past tense of make a dent?
The past tense of make a dent is made a dent.

Words near make a dent in the dictionary

  1. make a cat laugh
  2. make a clean breast
  3. make a dash for it
  4. make a day of it
  5. make a decision
  6. make a dent
  7. make a difference
  8. make a dollar out of fifteen cents
  9. make a face
  10. make a fist of
  11. make a fool of

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: make a dent (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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