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
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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
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Recent Examples of distresses
Amber Gaudet, Charlotte Observer, 6 May 2026
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
Noun
-
Common symptoms people experience are headaches, muscle aches, serious fevers, coughing, chest pains, shortness of breath and nausea, according to Kaiser Permanente.—
Noe Padilla,
USA Today,
7 May 2026
-
The pains and pleasures of family life are top of mind for her.—
Kate Erbland,
IndieWire,
7 May 2026
Verb
-
The worms thrash and move erratically with a snake-like motion that disturbs the topsoil.—
Maria Braganini,
CBS News,
25 Apr. 2026
-
There are lots of things weightlessness disturbs, even in the short run.—
Elizabeth Howell,
Space.com,
24 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
And yet, in the scene on the Hill of Love, Lapid offers no self-questioning, no sense of cinematic exertion or trouble, in the fictional framing of the real agonies of Gaza.—
Richard Brody,
New Yorker,
27 Mar. 2026
-
The celebrated poet and memoirist, delves into the agonies of her decision and describes the emerging women’s liberation movement, of which Moore would soon become a participant.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
20 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
This is hurtful and bothers me a lot.—
R. Eric Thomas,
Chicago Tribune,
5 May 2026
-
My fiance struggles with communication and tends to pretend nothing bothers him.—
Harriette Cole,
Mercury News,
4 May 2026
Noun
-
For those millions of Americans, spring weather brings sniffles, itchy eyes, asthma exacerbation, and other miseries, with effects ranging from mild symptoms to serious medical emergencies.—
Keerti Gopal,
ArsTechnica,
8 May 2026
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Inarguably one of the best teams in the country annually, the Boilermakers had a string of March miseries.—
Dana O’Neil,
CNN Money,
18 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Sheppard worries about possible injury or burnout as Gout grows.—
Jon Wertheim,
CBS News,
10 May 2026
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That’s also the gap that worries Ben Mizes, president of Clever Real Estate.—
Sydney Lake,
Fortune,
9 May 2026
Verb
-
We are told that raising these questions distracts from the issues that matter, such as rising costs, persistent crime and the condition of our city.—
Mark Conway,
Baltimore Sun,
9 May 2026
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Or maybe a still-working phonograph of Edison’s invention distracts you, until a wall of portraits of 1920s electrical manufacturing workers pulls your gaze in a new direction.—
Michael Kilian,
USA Today,
15 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
The excess is real; the debate concerns its origin.—
Paul M. Sutter,
Scientific American,
6 May 2026
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What concerns leaders of local governments are projections that show a troubling trend downward.—
Chicago Tribune,
Chicago Tribune,
4 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Distresses.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/distresses. Accessed 14 May. 2026.
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