Dictionary:
vent1 (vĕnt) ![]() |
- A means of escape or release from confinement; an outlet: give vent to one's anger.
- An opening permitting the escape of fumes, a liquid, a gas, or steam.
- The small hole at the breech of a gun through which the charge is ignited.
- Zoology. The excretory opening of the digestive tract in animals such as birds, reptiles, amphibians, and fish.
- Geology.
- The opening of a volcano in the earth's crust.
- An opening on the ocean floor that emits hot water and dissolved minerals.
v., vent·ed, vent·ing, vents. v.tr.
- To express (one's thoughts or feelings, for example), especially forcefully.
- To release or discharge (steam, for example) through an opening.
- To provide with a vent.
- To vent one's feelings or opinions.
- To be released or discharged through an opening.
- To rise to the surface of water to breathe. Used of a marine mammal.
[Partly from French vent (from Old French) and partly alteration of French évent (from Old French esvent, from esventer, to let out air, from Vulgar Latin *exventāre : Latin ex-; see ex– + Latin ventus, wind).]
venter vent'er n.SYNONYMS vent, express, utter, voice, air. These verbs mean to give outlet to thoughts or emotions. To vent is to unburden oneself of a strong pent-up emotion: “She was jealous … and glad of any excuse to vent her pique” (Edward G.E.L. Bulwer-Lytton). Express, a more comprehensive term, refers to both verbal and nonverbal communication: found the precise words to express her idea; expressed his affection with a hug; “expressing emotion in the form of art” (T.S. Eliot). Utter involves vocal expression: “The words were uttered in the hearing of Montezuma” (William Hickling Prescott). Voice denotes the expression of outlook or viewpoint: The lawyer voiced her satisfaction with the verdict. To air is to show off one's feelings, beliefs, or ideas: They aired their differences during dinner.
vent2 (vĕnt)

n.
A slit in a garment, as in the back seam of a jacket.
[Middle English vente, alteration (probably influenced by Old French vent, wind) of fente, from Old French, slit, from fendre, to split open, from Latin findere. See fission.]



