to bend someone's will
- idiom
:
doblar la voluntad
- The leader sought to bend the committee's will to his own agenda.
Examples
-
Despite intense negotiations, he refused to let them bend his will.
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He tried to bend my will with flattery.
-
They used every tactic, but they could not bend her will.
-
Don't bend her will!
-
The charismatic speaker was able to bend everyone's will in favor of the new policy.
-
Despite their attempts, they could not bend her will to their demands.
-
She used her charming personality to bend his will and get what she wanted.
Synonyms
∞
2.3
To make someone do something by using power or pressure
∞
2.7
Make someone believe something is true or agree to do something
472
2.7
To make someone agree or do something by giving reasons
382
6.1
To control people or things in a clever, often dishonest way
81
3.6
To cause someone to change their opinion or decision
54
3.3
Get someone to support or agree with you
54
4.1
To gently persuade someone by being kind and patient
51
4.9
Persuade someone to do something
23
6.7
To persuade someone to do something after repeated effort
18
3.0
Make someone think differently about something
15
7.7
To persuade someone to do something by gentle talk and praise
4
7.7
To persuade someone who does not want to do something to do it
3
3.6
To cause someone to change their mind
3
7.7
Make someone do what you want without them noticing
2
9.5
To get someone to do something by flattering or tricking them
1
6.0
To use influence to persuade someone to do something
1
3.9
To try to make someone change what they do by making them feel more stress
1
4.4
Get someone to agree or do something by pressuring them
To persuade someone to accept your idea or plan
Make someone change their opinion or decision
Antonyms
How Persuasive
Surface Forms
Morphology
The phrase is a metaphorical extension of the physical verb 'bend' (to change shape) applied to 'will' (determination), so the sense 'make someone change their mind/comply' is partially derivable from the parts. This bodily-to-mental metaphor is common across languages, but because it requires metaphorical inference rather than strictly compositional meaning, a B1 learner would likely need some exposure to be fully confident.
Etymology
Bend someone's will uses the simple image of bend, forcing something out of its straight shape, and will, a person's choice. So, like bending a piece of metal to a new shape, to bend someone's will means 'to make someone change their mind' or 'to make them do what you want'.