bore (down on) 1 of 2

verb

Definition of bore (down on)next
past tense of bear (down on)
as in weighed (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

bore down on

2 of 2

phrase

past tense of bear down on
as in highlighted
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 bore (down on)
  1. pressed
  2. shoved
  3. compressed
Verb
  • Rushing has been pressed into action with Will Smith out, as the franchise catcher’s neck issue has stretched from days to weeks to months, with no firm timetable in sight.
    — Fabian Ardaya, New York Times, 18 July 2026
  • The recirculation system, typically pressed with a button on the dashboard, will keep air in the car circulating through the car’s air filter and reduce particle concentrations.
    — Eduardo Cuevas, USA Today, 18 July 2026
Definition of pressed
Verb
  • The employee reportedly walked out from behind the counter and shoved his hand away, as briefly seen in the footage.
    — Colson Thayer, PEOPLE, 20 July 2026
  • On the trip down the floor before the confrontation, Clark drove to the basket and appeared to be shoved by Golden State veteran Kiah Stokes while attempting a layup.
    — Alejandro Avila OutKick, FOXNews.com, 16 July 2026
Definition of shoved
Verb
  • This year’s schedule has 84 games instead of 82 but without a three-week Olympic break, isn’t as compressed, allowing teams that travel extensively like the Sharks a bit more downtime between games.
    — Curtis Pashelka, Mercury News, 16 July 2026
  • The stock significantly underperformed as earnings stalled and valuation multiples compressed.
    — Harvey Stober, CNBC, 16 July 2026
Definition of compressed
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.

Browse Nearby Words

bore (down)
bore (down on)
bore down on
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Bore (down on).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bore%20%28down%20on%29. Accessed 24 Jul. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of itinerant

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Democracy or Republic: What's the difference?

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Do you 'say your piece' or 'say your peace'?

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

The Longest Long Words List

Ten Words Ending with a Silent ‘T’

The Words of the Week - Jul 24

Why do we say 'fly off the handle'?
See More

Popular

See More

Democracy or Republic: What's the difference?

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
chain-question-mark
Missing Link Quiz July 2026 Five seconds to figure out the word that fits bot...
See All