bear down

verb

bore down; borne down also born down; bearing down; bears down

transitive verb

: overcome, overwhelm

intransitive verb

: to exert full strength and concentrated attention

Phrases

bear down on

1

: emphasize

2

: to weigh heavily on : burden

Synonyms

• depress
• press
• shove
• weigh (on or upon)

Examples of bear down in a Sentence

you need to bear down on that cap a bit to get it to latch tightly

Recent Examples on the Web

The heat wave bearing down on the Southland was not expected to break until Tuesday. —Hannah Fry, Los Angeles Times, 9 Sep. 2024

Instead, your brain should kind of notice that big truck that’s bearing down on you. —Bruce Y. Lee, Forbes, 15 Sep. 2024

Nvidia boss Jensen Huang is starting to feel like Atlas with the weight of the world—or at least AI—bearing down squarely on his shoulders. —Christiaan Hetzner, Fortune, 12 Sep. 2024

The worst of this week’s heat wave is bearing down on Southern California over the next few days. —Summer Lin, Los Angeles Times, 4 Sep. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense

Kids Definition

bear down

verb

1

: overwhelm, overcome

2

: to press or weigh down

3

: to make an all-out effort

4

: to weigh heavily on : burden

Medical Definition

bear down

intransitive verb

(ˈ)ba(ə)r-ˈdau̇n, (ˈ)be(ə)r- 

: to contract the abdominal muscles and the diaphragm during childbirth