Tim
Is there a difference between "to lean over" and "to bend over" or are they the same ? Thank you :)
Jul 22, 2014 8:56 PM
Answers · 6
5
A person can be leaning over or bending over to pick something up. Bending over gives the image of the body bending at the waist and going forward toward the floor. Leaning could be to the side or toward the front. A book or a ladder or inanimate object can be leaning over, (angled) but cannot be bending over. An idiom "bending over backwards" means doing one's utmost to achieve something: I am bending over backwards to try and say I am sorry for our argument.
July 22, 2014
If there is a difference, bending, you can be to search for something and bend refers to an object
July 22, 2014
Hi Peachey, thank you for your answer.
July 30, 2014
Hi Tim, there is a big difference if there's an object in the sentence. If you lean over a railing, then your upper body is forward, and probably supported by the railing. If you bend over a railing, there are two possibilities: the same as lean over (except your body is clearly folded forward), or you grab the railing and bend it out of shape.
July 22, 2014
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