as in to weigh (on or upon)
to push steadily against with some force
you need to bear down on that cap a bit to get it to latch tightly
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
bear down on
2 of 2phrase
as in highlight
to indicate the importance of by centering attention on
Our manager bore down on the need to meet upcoming deadlines.
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for bear (down on)
Verb
-
Standing knee-deep in the lo‘i, covered in mud, gently pressing roots into the earth, anchored me in a new way.—
Wassan Al-Khudhairi,
Artforum,
2 Apr. 2026 -
Your 12th House of Solitude and your 9th House of Curiosity are in conflict under today’s Moon-Jupiter square, potentially pressing pause on upcoming plans.—
Tarot.com,
Hartford Courant,
2 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
If unhelpful naysayers shove their preferences onto you, just brush them off.—
Tarot.com,
Baltimore Sun,
30 Mar. 2026
-
With Dylan Larkin in the box, Noah Cates put the Flyers ahead by three goals by shoving a loose puck over the goal line on the power play with less than four minutes to play in the second.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
29 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Even if revelations of this nature did have an impact on voter preferences, a high percentage of early ballots cast could work to compress the window for late-breaking developments to concurrently shift outcomes, if at all.—
Claire Murphy,
Chicago Tribune,
26 Mar. 2026
-
Batch processing tools handle multiple files at once, including converting, compressing, or encrypting PDFs.—
StackCommerce Team,
PC Magazine,
26 Mar. 2026
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Cite this Entry
“Bear (down on).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bear%20%28down%20on%29. Accessed 3 Apr. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
