1
as in pressure
the burden on one's emotional or mental well-being created by demands on one's time
with a full-time job and her college courses, the young woman is under a lot of stress right now
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in emphasis
a special notice or importance given to something
the company's orientation program places considerable stress on workplace safety
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in to worry
to experience concern or anxiety
the restaurant manager has a tendency to stress about every little thing that goes wrong
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to emphasize
to make more apparent
his bad performance only stressed what I'd been saying all along
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in to highlight
to indicate the importance of by centering attention on
the doctor stressed the importance of exercise
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of stress
Alex Korb, Ph.d., CNBC, 4 May 2026
The same is true of excess water, which damages roots and causes plant stress.
—Kim Toscano, Southern Living, 4 May 2026
Madeline Buiano, Martha Stewart, 3 May 2026
Pure lunacy — and now stressing out students with crashes of a computer system.
—Voice Of The People, New York Daily News, 2 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for stress
Noun
Enjoyable activities boost motivation and reward circuits in your brain, while reducing stress hormones.
—Alex Korb, Ph.d., CNBC, 4 May 2026
The same is true of excess water, which damages roots and causes plant stress.
—Kim Toscano, Southern Living, 4 May 2026
Verb
While hydrangeas are resilient plants, transplanting at the wrong time or the wrong way can stress these plants, resulting in reduced flowering or even death.
—Madeline Buiano, Martha Stewart, 3 May 2026
Pure lunacy — and now stressing out students with crashes of a computer system.
—Voice Of The People, New York Daily News, 2 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for stress
Recent Examples of Synonyms for stress
Noun
-
But within Seattle’s defense — a unit built on balance, depth and consistent pressure — his role still mattered.—
Jackson Thompson OutKick,
FOXNews.com,
30 Apr. 2026
-
In a sign of the pressure for Republicans to take advantage of the opportunity, multiple hopefuls running for governor in GOP primaries called for immediate redraws.—
Nicholas Riccardi,
Chicago Tribune,
30 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
If these safeguards advance, why is the emphasis not on reforming underlying financing practices—including deferred interest and retroactive interest models—rather than further burdening providers who are attempting to offer patients a lawful payment pathway when traditional coverage fails them?—
Letters to the Editor,
Hartford Courant,
1 May 2026
-
The model itself came up as much as the work, with an emphasis on mentorship, salons, and slower growth.—
Daniel Cassady,
ARTnews.com,
1 May 2026
Verb
-
That worries Thomas Johnson, a Black voter in New Orleans who was at the state Capitol to lobby on unrelated legislation Wednesday when the Supreme Court ruling came down.—
Nicholas Riccardi,
Chicago Tribune,
30 Apr. 2026
-
When Arakas was arrested, Bon neww worried that the police might have accessed the Estonian’s BlackBerry.—
Ed Caesar,
New Yorker,
30 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Cavender, meanwhile, focused on fiscal discipline, public safety resources and neighborhood quality, while Crow emphasized affordability and community engagement in budget decisions.—
Sergio Candido,
CBS News,
3 May 2026
-
Rather than steering young people exclusively toward high-paying technical fields like computer science, a growing number are emphasizing the long-term value of skills often associated with a humanities or liberal arts education.—
Preston Fore,
Fortune,
3 May 2026
Verb
-
As the Moon moves into Sagittarius, your 2nd House of Resources comes into focus, highlighting money, time, and priorities that need attention.—
Tarot.com,
Hartford Courant,
3 May 2026
-
Prosecutors highlighted allegations of previous behavior of the suspect in the filings, including allegedly admiring the 2018 Woolsey fire, burning a Bible, threatening to burn his sister’s house down and using ChatGPT to generate images of people running from a burning forest.—
Sierra van der Brug,
Daily News,
2 May 2026
Noun
-
The long hours of immersion in cold water and the strain of swimming fully clothed through turbulent waves toward the tantalizingly near shoreline must have drained the last bit of endurance from him.—
Jim Hoagland,
Outdoor Life,
30 Apr. 2026
-
As of April 13, a total of 34 people in 13 states have been infected with the outbreak strain of salmonella saintpaul.—
Michele Laufik,
Martha Stewart,
30 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
The Moon moves through your 4th House of Home, bringing focus to your environment or emotional base and what needs support.—
Tarot.com,
Sun Sentinel,
4 May 2026
-
Uranus in your 5th House of Creativity can shift your personal focus unexpectedly or pull your attention elsewhere.—
Tarot.com,
Hartford Courant,
3 May 2026
Verb
-
Bias asks whether the system perpetuates, amplifies, or introduces systematic disadvantage, including through feedback loops where biased outputs reinforce biased inputs.—
Jeffrey Sonnenfeld,
Fortune,
2 May 2026
-
Officials stated the goal is to give drivers time to adjust and reinforce safe behavior around school buses.—
Ivan Taylor,
CBS News,
2 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Stress.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/stress. Accessed 6 May. 2026.
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