distressed
adjective
dis·tressed
di-ˈstrest 
: of, relating to, or experiencing economic decline or difficulty
federal grants for distressed cities
Examples of distressed in a Sentence
She felt emotionally and physically distressed.
The government provided funds to the economically distressed city.
Donations were given to financially distressed families.
Recent Examples on the Web
But critics and former employees who spoke with CNN say the AI company has long known of the dangers of the tool’s tendency toward sycophancy – repeatedly reinforcing and encouraging any kind of input – particularly for users who are distressed or mentally ill.
—
Allison Gordon, CNN Money, 6 Nov. 2025
Josephine’s former guidance counselor recalls that words, tastes, and colors would sometimes get mixed up in her head—episodes that left her distressed and that the counselor never understood.
—Jp Mangalindan, Time, 6 Nov. 2025
Its distressed jackets and patchwork dresses, each hand-mended and one-of-a-kind, are not fashioned for mass production but for permanence.
—Maria Williams, USA Today, 4 Nov. 2025
In study after study, Harlow, Gluck, and their colleagues found that their primates were sentient, self-aware, and severely distressed.
—Ava Kofman, New Yorker, 3 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for distressed
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Allison Gordon, CNN Money, 6 Nov. 2025
Josephine’s former guidance counselor recalls that words, tastes, and colors would sometimes get mixed up in her head—episodes that left her distressed and that the counselor never understood.
—Jp Mangalindan, Time, 6 Nov. 2025
Its distressed jackets and patchwork dresses, each hand-mended and one-of-a-kind, are not fashioned for mass production but for permanence.
—Maria Williams, USA Today, 4 Nov. 2025
In study after study, Harlow, Gluck, and their colleagues found that their primates were sentient, self-aware, and severely distressed.
—Ava Kofman, New Yorker, 3 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for distressed
Cite this Entry
“Distressed.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/distressed. Accessed 7 Nov. 2025.
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