indent [LME] Although their meanings have in common an idea of a gap or notch, there are two completely unrelated words indent in English. One, meaning ‘to make a dent or impression in’, is formed directly from dent [ME] ‘a hollow made by a blow or pressure’, which is a variant form of *dint. The other goes back to Latin dens ‘tooth’, the source of dental [L16th] and related words. Its first meaning was ‘to give a zigzag outline to’, like a set of sharp teeth. The legal term indenture [LME], ‘a legal document, contract, or agreement’, is related. Before the days of easy duplication, lawyers would write out the same contract twice on a single piece of parchment or paper. They would then separate the two sections with a serrated or wavy edge and give one to each party. If ever there was a dispute, the fact that the two edges fitted together was proof that they were the same agreement.