as in pressure
the use of power to impose one's will on another
complied with the order only under duress
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of duress
Whether to add a new instrument to the arsenal is a decision the country can make deliberately today, or under duress later.
—
Gretchen Wittenmyer-Stone,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
16 June 2026
Even the most meticulous training cannot quite capture the duress of the finals.
—
Jared Weiss,
New York Times,
14 June 2026
In the beginning, there was bread The book’s centerpiece chapters on starters, mains and sweets are bookended on one side by a treatise on how to make and store breadcrumbs of various sizes, with an under-duress sub-section about how to buy breadcrumbs.
—
Scott Hocker,
TheWeek,
8 June 2026
Preller is hypercompetitive, doing some of his best work when under heavy duress.
—
Tom Krasovic,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
6 June 2026
See All Example Sentences for duress
Gretchen Wittenmyer-Stone,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
16 June 2026
Even the most meticulous training cannot quite capture the duress of the finals.
—
Jared Weiss,
New York Times,
14 June 2026
In the beginning, there was bread The book’s centerpiece chapters on starters, mains and sweets are bookended on one side by a treatise on how to make and store breadcrumbs of various sizes, with an under-duress sub-section about how to buy breadcrumbs.
—
Scott Hocker,
TheWeek,
8 June 2026
Preller is hypercompetitive, doing some of his best work when under heavy duress.
—
Tom Krasovic,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
6 June 2026
See All Example Sentences for duress
Recent Examples of Synonyms for duress
Noun
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These episodes have been triggered by intense heat domes — stubborn areas of high pressure that lock hot air in place — and are clearly supercharged by global warming, experts say.
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Even as the communist country proposes reforms, the United States continues a pressure campaign, ramping up economic sanctions and maintaining an oil embargo that has plunged much of the island into darkness.
Noun
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Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, North Carolina, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont and Washington are included in the states opting out, with the majority citing budget constraints in their reasoning.
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However, the dream of fully sovereign AI inevitably runs up against hard constraints around compute, capital, and energy.
Noun
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At a time like this, poetry must embrace a compulsion for awareness.
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There’s this prevailing sentiment of perseverance in spite of grief, and a compulsion to dedicate his success to those who witnessed the journey.
Noun
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Slobodan Dimitrijevic, 52, was also charged with stalking, plus four misdemeanors — criminal trespass, two counts of harassment and one count of intimidation.
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Critics of the bill have faced arrest and detention, while others have alleged harassment and intimidation.
Noun
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The Buildings Department plans to bolster the good will Pilku’s counting on with a suite of regulatory changes that are working their way through the system, some of them in the form of incentive rather than coercion.
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What are the limits of force, coercion and power?
Cite this Entry
“Duress.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/duress. Accessed 1 Jul. 2026.
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