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Origin and history of bender

bender(n.)

late 15c., "instrument for bending," agent noun from bend (v.). Slang meaning "drinking bout" is American English, attested from 1846, perhaps from the Scottish sense of "a hard drinker" (1728). Perhaps from the verb in the figurative sense of "strain, brace, wind up." Other slang senses included "a sixpence" (1836) "( ? Because it bends easily.)" [OED]; "a leg" (U.S., 1849).

also from late 15c.

Entries linking to bender

bend(v.)

Old English bendan "to bend a bow, bring into a curved state; confine with a string, fetter," causative of bindan "to bind," from Proto-Germanic base *band- "string, band" (source also of Old Norse benda "to join, strain, strive, bend"), from PIE root *bhendh- "to bind."

The meaning "curve or make crooked" (early 14c.) is via the notion of bending a bow to string it. The intransitive sense of "become curved or crooked" is from late 14c., that of "incline, turn from the straight line" is from 1510s. The figurative meaning "bow, be submissive" is from c. 1400. Cognate with band, bind, bond, and Bund. Related: Bended; bent; bending.

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    curve
    early 15c. (implied in curved), intransitive, "have or assume a curved form," from Latin curvus "crooked, curved, bent," and curvare "to bend," both from PIE root *sker- (2) "to turn, bend." Transitive sense of  "cause to take the shape of a curve, bend" is from 1660s....169
    carouse
    "to drink freely and revel noisily," 1550s, from French carousser "drink, quaff, swill," from German gar aus "quite out," from gar austrinken; trink garaus "to drink up entirely." Kluge says it was originally the German exclamation accompanying closing time (Polizeistunde). From
    archer
    For "archer" Middle English had bowman, also scutte, from Old English scytta, also bender (which also meant "maker of bows...
    gender
    Gender-bender is from 1977, popularized from 1980, with reference to pop star David Bowie....
    delivery
    early 15c., "act of setting free from bondage," also "action of handing over to another," from Anglo-French delivrée, noun use of fem. past participle of Old French delivrer (see deliver). Sense of "childbirth, giving forth of offspring" is by 1570s; that of "manner of utterance
    loot
    "goods taken from an enemy, etc.," 1802 (in Charles James's "Military Dictionary," London, which defines it as "Indian term for plunder or pillage"), Anglo-Indian, from Hindi lut, from Sanskrit loptram, lotram "booty, stolen property," from PIE *roup-tro-, from root *reup- "to sn
    tool
    Old English tol "instrument, implement used by a craftsman or laborer, weapon," from Proto-Germanic *tōwalan "implement" (source also of Old Norse tol), from a verb stem represented by Old English tawian "prepare" (see taw). The ending is the instrumental suffix -el (1). The figu
    lever
    "simple machine consisting of a rigid piece acted upon at different points by two forces," c. 1300, from Old French levier (12c.) "a lifter, a lever, crowbar," agent noun from lever "to raise" (10c.), from Latin levare "to raise," from levis "light" in weight, "not heavy," also,
    revel
    late 14c. (c. 1200 as a surname), "riotous merry-making," also an occasion of this, from Old French revel, resvel "entertainment, revelry," verbal noun from reveler, also rebeller (14c.) "be disorderly, make merry" (see rebel (adj.)). "The development of sense in OF. is 'rebellio
    pitch
    "thick, tenacious, resinous substance obtained from tar or turpentine, wood tar," late 12c., pich, piche, from Old English pic "pitch," from a Germanic borrowing (compare Old Saxon and Old Frisian pik, Middle Dutch pik, Dutch pek, Old High German pek, German Pech, Old Norse bik)

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