as in perplexed
faced with difficulty or uncertainty about what to say, think, or do
they will be hard-pressed to come up with any facts that actually support their argument
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Recent Examples of hard-pressed
Fisch, unlike DeBoer, is at a program that would be hard-pressed -- to say the least -- to match the financial backing Michigan could offer him.
—
Tyler Everett, MSNBC Newsweek, 11 Dec. 2025
No Kevorian Barnes The Horned Frogs were already going to be hard-pressed to generate a run game against BYU’s elite front seven, but now TCU will have to do so without leading rusher Kevorian Barnes, who was listed as out on the player availability report.
—Steven Johnson, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 14 Nov. 2025
Still, the alliance may offer new ideas for the nation’s biggest backers of TV news, who have been hard-pressed to win ad dollars for such programing in recent years.
—Brian Steinberg, Variety, 10 Nov. 2025
Scientists, for their part, were hard-pressed to pinpoint the cause of the disaster.
—Literary Hub, 22 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for hard-pressed
Tyler Everett, MSNBC Newsweek, 11 Dec. 2025
No Kevorian Barnes The Horned Frogs were already going to be hard-pressed to generate a run game against BYU’s elite front seven, but now TCU will have to do so without leading rusher Kevorian Barnes, who was listed as out on the player availability report.
—Steven Johnson, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 14 Nov. 2025
Still, the alliance may offer new ideas for the nation’s biggest backers of TV news, who have been hard-pressed to win ad dollars for such programing in recent years.
—Brian Steinberg, Variety, 10 Nov. 2025
Scientists, for their part, were hard-pressed to pinpoint the cause of the disaster.
—Literary Hub, 22 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for hard-pressed
Recent Examples of Synonyms for hard-pressed
Adjective
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Fallon, slightly perplexed and towering over Williams, awaits instruction.—
Larisha Paul,
Rolling Stone,
12 Jan. 2026
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Those late audits have caused ongoing comments by engaged residents who are perplexed that year after year the town’s government is not able to provide the same audit the state’s other 168 municipalities complete and submit to the public and the state’s budget office.—
Kevin Rennie,
Hartford Courant,
10 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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During the latest hearing in the case, Young repeatedly seemed baffled that the country’s top leaders would attempt to implement such a policy.—
Dallas Morning News,
Dallas Morning News,
23 Jan. 2026
-
Many are somewhat baffled or turned off by the ale.—
Gary Stoller,
Forbes.com,
16 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
The usually positive Gauff went negative, lacked energy and seemed bewildered and overwhelmed.—
Merlisa Lawrence Corbett,
Forbes.com,
27 Jan. 2026
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Since his starring days at Gonzaga, Timme has earned bewildered double takes.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
20 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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The reporter who asked Lynch about the substation seemed embarrassed to be talking about it, and most reasonable people clearly understand that the idea is far-fetched.—
Kaitlyn Tiffany,
The Atlantic,
23 Jan. 2026
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There would have been no awkward moment in the office, no teenager too embarrassed to ask questions, no doctor walking on eggshells.—
Anamika Shrimali,
STAT,
21 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Hard-pressed.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hard-pressed. Accessed 30 Jan. 2026.
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