tended 1 of 2

past tense of tend
as in leaned
to show a liking or proneness (for something) her wardrobe tends toward dark colors and heavy fabrics

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

tended

2 of 2

verb (2)

past tense of tend
1
2
3
as in cultivated
to work by plowing, sowing, and raising crops on plots that during the war were tended by city dwellers as vegetable gardens

Synonyms & Similar Words

4

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of tended
Verb
Nobody really asked that question out loud too much, and especially in my community, which tended to be more conservative than some other orders. — Jonathan Bullington, Chicago Tribune, 18 Oct. 2026 Across the West Bank, the Palestine Red Crescent Society said that its medics had tended to 14 wounded people in six locations, while local officials reported at least four injuries in two additional villages. — Sam Metz, Los Angeles Times, 16 Oct. 2026 As those revenues became scarcer in the years after Proposition 13, which capped annual increases, counties tended to bargain more fiercely, and cities tended to get smaller shares, Laurel previously said. — Sacbee.com, 16 Oct. 2026 These names tended to relate to a specific location (such as a street or square) or were extremely vague. — Literary Hub, 16 Oct. 2026 An analysis of data from two previous clinical trials also showed that patients whose tumors showed stronger gamma delta T cell signatures tended to have better overall survival when treated with immune checkpoint inhibitors during chemotherapy. — New Atlas, 15 Oct. 2026 But fears of a bubble suddenly popping have tended to be overblown. — Hanna Ziady, CNN Money, 15 Oct. 2026 Those changes take the pressure off automakers that have tended to produce less-efficient vehicles — such as SUVs, pickup trucks or high-performance sports cars. — Robert Ferris, CNBC, 15 Oct. 2026 The first attempts at a foldable smartphone in the 2010s from other companies tended to be fragile and not all that useful, with a big, ugly crease in the center interrupting the experience. — Andrew R. Chow, Time, 15 Oct. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for tended
Verb
  • Where Iran ads are most prevalent While the Iran war ads made up about 5% of the total TV spots aired across the competitive races, some contests leaned into the topic heavily.
    — Kevin Freking, Fortune, 17 Oct. 2026
  • While the Iran war ads made up about 5% of the total TV spots aired across the competitive races, some contests leaned into the topic heavily.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 17 Oct. 2026
Verb
  • On a humid morning in June, Ramadan Elmoudi nervously watched grid current flow into a machine his colleagues had spent years building and kept his expectations low.
    — Alex Pasternack, Scientific American, 20 Oct. 2026
  • Justice Diana Kavedza Mochache said in a hearing lasting more than eight hours that in some cases children were isolated and denied food while their parents watched.
    — Jefferson Kahinju Reuters, Arkansas Online, 20 Oct. 2026
Verb
  • Melanie Lawrence, a 68-year-old independent, worries about wells going dry in her area near Willcox, where the groundwater grew so depleted that the land started to crack.
    — Hannah Knowles The Washington Post, Arkansas Online, 19 Oct. 2026
  • China’s economy grew faster than expected in the third quarter thanks to the country’s powerful export machine, with domestic consumption still lagging and the authorities showing little interest in fiscal stimulus.
    — Prashant Rao, semafor.com, 19 Oct. 2026
Verb
  • Vance speaks with the manipulative skill of a politician who has cultivated a rapid-fire style designed not to persuade, but to overwhelm.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 16 Oct. 2026
  • Porsche has cultivated an identity that extends well beyond the vehicles sitting in its dealerships.
    — Chris Hardesty, AJC.com, 16 Oct. 2026
Verb
  • Cybersecurity And Functional Safety Are Converging Cybersecurity and functional safety have traditionally been managed as separate disciplines, although today they are increasingly considered part of the same operational risk environment.
    — Gregory Shahnovsky, Forbes.com, 13 Oct. 2026
  • After the initial disclosure, Acme took several meetings with a mix of studios and filmmakers eager to understand how a project managed to dramatically lower costs.
    — Corbin Bolies, Variety, 13 Oct. 2026
Verb
  • For those inclined toward a full suite of diamonds, there’s also a necklace and matching bracelet composed of round brilliant stones, each framed by a delicate diamond halo.
    — Lilah Ramzi, Vogue, 15 Oct. 2026
  • Spooky season is all about getting your thrills, and for the literary-inclined, there is plenty to look forward to this month.
    — Theara Coleman, TheWeek, 8 Oct. 2026
Verb
  • Just last weekend, Sheerazie supervised a group of Boy Scouts digging a 2-foot-deep swale as part of an Eagle Scout Service Project at Arlington Garden.
    — Pedro Moura, Los Angeles Times, 15 Oct. 2026
  • Moton discussed it and his future with numerous people, including his family and Panthers team doctor Nancy Gritter, who supervised much of his care.
    — Scott Fowler, Charlotte Observer, 14 Oct. 2026
Verb
  • Those changes seem to be linked to metabolic shifts, among them reductions in the load of glucose, the body’s standard fuel, which is produced mostly from carbohydrates.
    — Rowan Jacobsen, Scientific American, 20 Oct. 2026
  • For context, burning fossil fuels produced about 38 billion tons in 2025.
    — Scott K. Johnson, ArsTechnica, 19 Oct. 2026

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Cite this Entry

“Tended.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/tended. Accessed 20 Oct. 2026.

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