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

Today, all 21 buildings are either in receivership, foreclosed or highly distressed. —CBS News, 14 Jan. 2026

Simond said demand is coming from a broad mix of investors, including mainstream emerging-market asset managers, as well as hedge funds and distressed-debt specialists seeking asymmetric upside. —Lee Ying Shan, CNBC, 13 Jan. 2026

An Australian Shepherd lost in a windstorm over the weekend was reunited with her distressed owner, with some help from a thermal drone. —Claire Wang, Oc Register, 13 Jan. 2026

Pentwater manages over $3 billion in assets, specializing in distressed securities around the world. —Evan Clark, Footwear News, 13 Jan. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1613, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for distressed

• acquiesced
• coalesced
• dispossessed
• manifest
• overdressed
• overstressed
• prepossessed
• reassessed
• reinvest
• repossessed
• unaddressed
• uncompressed