distresses 1 of 2

noun

plural of distress
as in pains
a state of great suffering of body or mind the upcoming bar exam is causing us considerable distress the survivors were in extreme distress after having been stranded on the island for a week with no food

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

distresses

2 of 2

verb

present tense third-person singular of distress
as in disturbs
to trouble the mind of; to make uneasy don't let all the bad news distress you

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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 distresses
Verb
About 6 million Americans had opioid use disorder — a problematic pattern of opioid use that significantly impairs or distresses a patient — as of 2022, according to the CDC. — Amber Gaudet, Charlotte Observer, 6 May 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for distresses
  1. pains
  2. disturbs
  3. agonies
  4. bothers
  5. miseries
  6. worries
  7. distracts
  8. concerns
Noun
  • Blanche said department lawyers took pains to protect the women involved, and quickly fixed any errors that were found.
    — Alanna Durkin Richer, Fortune, 16 July 2026
  • Those include aches and pains, fever, cough, shortness of breath.
    — Matthew Sedacca, Curbed, 15 July 2026
Definition of pains
Verb
  • Tilling or plowing in the summer disturbs the soil's delicate ecosystem and exposes moist soil to rapid water loss.
    — Mary Marlowe Leverette, Southern Living, 24 June 2026
  • The pier in Michigan City’s Washington Park disturbs the natural flow of sand along the lakeshore, creating new land east of the pier but starving beaches to the west, an erosion problem repeated by other manmade structures that jut out into Lake Michigan.
    — Doug Ross, Chicago Tribune, 15 June 2026
Definition of disturbs
Noun
  • Sadly, in discouraging all the phantom agonies, FIFA inadvertently seems to have done away with the equally farcical phenomenon that is Magic Spray®.
    — Anthony Crupi, Sportico.com, 17 July 2026
  • The reticence of Cartland’s heroes belies agonies of loneliness.
    — Simon Perry, PEOPLE, 18 June 2026
Definition of agonies
Verb
  • If that bothers you, then a significant projection for Bo Nix’s season will make your skin crawl.
    — Troy Renck, Denver Post, 6 July 2026
  • What bothers me more is when passengers take up valuable overhead bin space with personal items like backpacks and jackets before everyone has finished boarding.
    — Skyli Alvarez, Condé Nast Traveler, 6 July 2026
Definition of bothers
Noun
  • The sad thing is that the miseries return, but there is no other Garrincha available.
    — Jack Lang, New York Times, 28 May 2026
  • The parallels between Ines’ dilemma and that of a nation being asked to lick its wounds in silence — in the name of moving on from past miseries — are present but elusive.
    — Jessica Kiang, Variety, 14 May 2026
Definition of miseries
Verb
  • The germ Eickhorst worries about most is molluscum contagiosum, a common childhood skin virus.
    — Angela Haupt, Time, 20 July 2026
  • Sabath similarly worries we’re actively being trained to lack the patience and ability to take action during hard times.
    — Larisha Paul, Rolling Stone, 20 July 2026
Definition of worries
Verb
  • Align Expansion With Your Mission Before expanding, ask whether the new service strengthens your mission or distracts from it.
    — Expert Panel®, Forbes.com, 10 July 2026
  • Mother’s explosion distracts Blaine and frees Sam.
    — Dessi Gomez, Deadline, 22 May 2026
Definition of distracts
Verb
  • Bradač’s proof concerns off-diagonal Ramsey numbers, which allow for large differences between the size of a clique and the size of an independent set.
    — Sam Macdonald, Scientific American, 15 July 2026
  • Lyndsy Fonseca, rapper Russ, Tom Cavanagh, Hunter King, Joseph Lee Anderson and Rob Riggle star in the indie film, which concerns a group of campers who run into a nasty, giant, prehistoric spider.
    — William Earl, Variety, 15 July 2026
Definition of concerns

Browse Nearby Words

distressed
distresses
distressful
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Distresses.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/distresses. Accessed 21 Jul. 2026.

Copy Citation

More from Merriam-Webster on distresses

Nglish: Translation of distresses for Spanish Speakers

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 dog days

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

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?

Commonly Misspelled Words
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

The Longest Long Words List

Ten Words Ending with a Silent ‘T’

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

Popular

See More

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

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat
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
thumbnail graphic with text word of the day quiz
Weekly "Word of the Day" Quiz See how well you know each Word of the Day for Ju...
See All