distress 1 of 2

distress

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verb

Synonym Chooser

How does the noun distress differ from other similar words?

Some common synonyms of distress are agony, misery, and suffering. While all these words mean "the state of being in great trouble," distress implies an external and usually temporary cause of great physical or mental strain and stress.

the hurricane put everyone in great distress

When might agony be a better fit than distress?

In some situations, the words agony and distress are roughly equivalent. However, agony suggests pain too intense to be borne.

in agony over the death of their child

When is misery a more appropriate choice than distress?

While in some cases nearly identical to distress, misery stresses the unhappiness attending especially sickness, poverty, or loss.

the homeless live with misery every day

When could suffering be used to replace distress?

The synonyms suffering and distress are sometimes interchangeable, but suffering implies conscious endurance of pain or distress.

the suffering of famine victims

Example Sentences

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.
Recent Examples of distress
Noun
Buying into distress feels awful in the moment. Steve Booren, Denver Post, 19 Oct. 2025 There were other signs of distress. Boston Herald Wire Services, Boston Herald, 18 Oct. 2025
Verb
His heart was racing, his breathing distressed. Paul Sisson, San Diego Union-Tribune, 7 Sep. 2025 Recent downgrades by ratings agencies Fitch and Moody’s have raised questions on Afreximbank’s lending, especially to distressed African states. Alexander Onukwue, semafor.com, 3 Sep. 2025 See All Example Sentences for distress
Recent Examples of Synonyms for distress
Noun
  • Aches and pains don’t compare to the agony of an unrealized dream.
    Jace Frederick, Twin Cities, 13 Oct. 2025
  • But this specific take on the agony and the, well, extra helping of agony that parenthood often feels like is all hers.
    David Fear, Rolling Stone, 10 Oct. 2025
Noun
  • How do soldiers assess risk or make life-or-death decisions?
    Big Think, Big Think, 18 Oct. 2025
  • New research found missing a first mammogram was linked to a higher risk of breast cancer death.
    Julia Landwehr, Health, 18 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • Russia’s war economy has reached a staggering scale that should alarm every European leader.
    Eleanor Pringle, Fortune, 16 Oct. 2025
  • Japan was alarmed enough by the 2010 embargo — quietly lifted as Sino-Japanese relations improved — to launch a crash recycling program to reduce its China risk.
    Andy Browne, semafor.com, 16 Oct. 2025
Noun
  • It's been a consistently reliable genre in the decades since, pairing mental anguish and unreliable perspectives with nightmarish imagery and terrors that lie just beyond our perceptions.
    Steven Thrash, Entertainment Weekly, 19 Oct. 2025
  • Through his music, Carrillo transforms personal anguish into empowering anthems, elevating moments of silence into rich, melodic soundscapes and celebrating the beauty of struggle itself.
    Jessica Roiz, Billboard, 17 Oct. 2025
Noun
  • The Greg Knapp Memorial Fund raises money to save lives through education and advocacy on the dangers of distracted driving.
    Jerry McDonald, Mercury News, 19 Oct. 2025
  • Over the course of a conversation that spanned more than a million words and 300 hours, the bot encouraged Brooks to adopt grandiose beliefs, validated his delusions, and led him to believe the technological infrastructure that underpins the world was in imminent danger.
    Beatrice Nolan, Fortune, 19 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • The other legend concerns a black magic practitioner who fell in love with a princess.
    Sophie Friedman, AFAR Media, 22 Oct. 2025
  • This is a doc not at all focused on the circumstances of her death and concerned more for celebrating and recognizing the impact of Selena’s life.
    Christian Blauvelt, IndieWire, 21 Oct. 2025
Noun
  • For adults, lead poisoning can cause abdominal pain, muscle weakness, kidney dysfunction, and hypertension.
    Peter Aitken, MSNBC Newsweek, 18 Oct. 2025
  • Wehling believed inflammation is at the root of joint pain and that human blood contained a remedy.
    Justin Fenner, Robb Report, 18 Oct. 2025
Noun
  • The status of Seth Rollins and the WWE World Heavyweight Championship is in serious jeopardy following his victory at Crown Jewel.
    Andrew Ravens‎, MSNBC Newsweek, 17 Oct. 2025
  • The swimming pool scene gave that sense of jeopardy.
    Lexy Perez, HollywoodReporter, 10 Oct. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Distress.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/distress. Accessed 23 Oct. 2025.

More from Merriam-Webster on distress

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