to bend to someone's will
- idiom
:
someterse a la voluntad de alguien
- You can get the world to bend to your will.
Examples
-
They... people who refused to bend to the will of God, and claim it privilege.
-
In the face of overwhelming evidence, he was forced to bend to her will regarding the project's direction.
-
I am not about to bend to the will of some pubescent queen.
-
Will we bend to the will of the foreigner?"
-
A thousand broken sticks and swords won't teach as much as the one that bends to your will.
-
I have found, when dealing with foreigners, if one speaks loudly and slowly, they'll bend to your will.
-
After months of negotiation, the manager decided to bend to the company's will to secure a deal.
-
Despite his initial resistance, he eventually chose to bend to their will to maintain peace in the office.
Synonyms
411
1.0
Do what someone in charge tells you or follow a rule
220
3.0
To stop resisting and agree to what others want
187
4.1
To accept another person's control, often against your wishes
127
6.3
To give in to another person's wishes or demands
71
6.7
To give in to pressure or demands
69
5.8
Fail to resist a strong feeling or pressure and give in
43
7.0
To accept something you tried to refuse
36
6.2
To accept another person's opinion or decision out of respect
31
5.8
To stop resisting and allow something to happen, like a person giving in or a storm easing
30
3.7
Lower your head or body to show respect, often as a sign that you obey someone
21
4.8
Give in to pressure or strong requests after resisting
20
8.4
To accept something you do not want without complaining
12
9.2
To behave very obediently to please a person in power
9
8.9
To show too much respect and obedience to someone in power
5
7.6
To give in to pressure or demands from others
4
8.4
To give in to pressure or someone in charge even if you do not want to
2
6.7
To give in to pressure even though you do not want to
2
8.4
To give in to pressure or criticism
1
8.4
To show loyalty and obey a powerful person
Antonyms
How Submissive
12
9.2
23
8.4
220
3.0
- Formal
20
8.4
332
3.8
Surface Forms
Morphology
The literal meanings of 'bend' (to curve) and 'will' (one's determination) combine metaphorically so a learner can plausibly infer 'yield or give in' from 'bend to someone's will'; the physical-to-social metaphor is common and often paralleled in other languages. However, the use is conventionalized and the exact nuance ('submit to someone's wishes/authority') is not fully predictable from the parts alone, so it is only partially transparent.
Etymology
Bend to someone's will may come from the image of a thin branch that bends when someone pushes it, so the branch moves to the person's will, meaning their desire. That's why the phrase means 'to give in to someone's wishes'.