indent: Meaning and Definition of

in•dent

Pronunciation: (v.in-dent'n.in'dent, in-dent'), [key]
— v.t.
  1. to form deep recesses in: The sea indents the coast.
  2. to set in or back from the margin, as the first line of a paragraph.
  3. to sever (a document drawn up in duplicate) along an irregular line as a means of identification.
  4. to cut or tear the edge of (copies of a document) in an irregular way.
  5. to make toothlike notches in; notch.
  6. to indenture, as an apprentice.
  7. to draw an order upon.
  8. to order, as commodities.
—v.i.
  1. to form a recess.
  2. to make out an order or requisition in duplicate.
    1. to draw upon a person or thing for something.
    2. to enter into an agreement by indenture; make a compact.
—n.
  1. a toothlike notch or deep recess; indentation.
  2. an indention.
  3. an indenture.
  4. a certificate issued by a state or the federal government at the close of the Revolutionary War for the principal or interest due on the public debt.
  5. a requisition for stores.

in•dent

Pronunciation: (v.in-dent'n.in'dent, in-dent'), [key]
— v.t.
  1. to dent; press in so as to form a dent: to indent a pattern on metal.
  2. to make or form a dent in: The wooden stairs had been indented by horses' hooves.
—n.
  1. a dent.
Random House Unabridged Dictionary, Copyright © 1997, by Random House, Inc., on Infoplease.
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