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

see also:

bear down on

Synonyms of bear down

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

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

Where a good firm stone would help the snail push back against the starfish and right herself again, the sand would slither out from under or close over her; and the starfish would bear down, extruding its stomach to engulf her, its digestive juices dissolving her alive. —Literary Hub, 23 Feb. 2026

Greenwashed is billed as an urgent call to action to tackle the challenges bearing down on humans, wildlife and the planet. —Stewart Clarke, Deadline, 23 Feb. 2026

The city is bearing down on top of the viewer. —Adriane Quinlan, Curbed, 23 Feb. 2026

Blizzard and winter weather warnings have been issued as a coastal, nor'easter-style snowstorm bears down on the Philadelphia area and Jersey Shore Sunday afternoon and into Monday. —Andrew Kozak, CBS News, 22 Feb. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense

Rhymes for bear down

• adown
• blowdown
• breakdown
• countdown
• crackdown
• crosstown
• downtown
• drawdown
• dropdown
• facedown
• godown
• hometown

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