as in forced
to cause (a person) to give in to pressure
his father pressured him to go out for the swim team
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Recent Examples of pressured
But as the ball bounced on the turf, Tritons forward Payton Fitch pressured and kicked it loose for Schotemeyer to score early in the showdown.
—
Dan Albano, Oc Register, 14 Jan. 2026
The people who do know about it (and who pressured theaters to book it) are his audience.
—Dana Harris-Bridson, IndieWire, 14 Jan. 2026
Cheon, pressured by Na and worried that Geon-young’s arrest is a distraction from Ki-tae’s drug dealing, forces Ki-tae to release Geon-young.
—Kayti Burt, Time, 14 Jan. 2026
Wall Street posted another losing session on Wednesday, pressured by declines in tech.
—Pia Singh, CNBC, 14 Jan. 2026
Against New England, there were offensive line woes and Justin Herbert getting pressured on 30 of 44 drop-backs, which, according to Pro Football Focus, was the second-highest pressure rate of the entire season (behind the Chargers’ Week 14 effort against the Philadelphia Eagles).
—Benjamin Royer, Los Angeles Times, 13 Jan. 2026
Herbert was pressured on almost 66 percent of his dropbacks.
—Daniel Popper, New York Times, 13 Jan. 2026
In her cross-complaint, Wilson claimed that Ghost forced MacInnes to live with her during production and then pressured her to take a shower and bath together.
—Nancy Dillon, Rolling Stone, 13 Jan. 2026
Heading into the November midterm election, which Democrats believe will hinge on issues such as affordability and health care, national outcry over ICE’s conduct has pressured lawmakers to speak out.
—Matt Brown, Chicago Tribune, 10 Jan. 2026
Dan Albano, Oc Register, 14 Jan. 2026
The people who do know about it (and who pressured theaters to book it) are his audience.
—Dana Harris-Bridson, IndieWire, 14 Jan. 2026
Cheon, pressured by Na and worried that Geon-young’s arrest is a distraction from Ki-tae’s drug dealing, forces Ki-tae to release Geon-young.
—Kayti Burt, Time, 14 Jan. 2026
Wall Street posted another losing session on Wednesday, pressured by declines in tech.
—Pia Singh, CNBC, 14 Jan. 2026
Against New England, there were offensive line woes and Justin Herbert getting pressured on 30 of 44 drop-backs, which, according to Pro Football Focus, was the second-highest pressure rate of the entire season (behind the Chargers’ Week 14 effort against the Philadelphia Eagles).
—Benjamin Royer, Los Angeles Times, 13 Jan. 2026
Herbert was pressured on almost 66 percent of his dropbacks.
—Daniel Popper, New York Times, 13 Jan. 2026
In her cross-complaint, Wilson claimed that Ghost forced MacInnes to live with her during production and then pressured her to take a shower and bath together.
—Nancy Dillon, Rolling Stone, 13 Jan. 2026
Heading into the November midterm election, which Democrats believe will hinge on issues such as affordability and health care, national outcry over ICE’s conduct has pressured lawmakers to speak out.
—Matt Brown, Chicago Tribune, 10 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pressured
Verb
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With temperatures climbing above freezing and sunny skies melting half the structure, they were forced to start over entirely.—
Jordan Greene,
PEOPLE,
14 Jan. 2026
-
Twenty-two people — two civilians and 20 firefighters — were injured and thousands were forced to evacuate.—
Claire Wang,
Oc Register,
14 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Given rising trade tensions and the likely unsustainable strength in the export sector, Beijing might eventually be compelled to ramp up its policy measures significantly.—
Evelyn Cheng,
CNBC,
9 Jan. 2026
-
You might be compelled to flirt with the visible lingerie trend or pair a new faux fur coat with tall Uggs.—
Maressa Brown,
InStyle,
9 Jan. 2026
Verb
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How was Twitter to plainly determine whether an amateur pornographic video featured a sixteen-year-old or an eighteen-year-old, or if that video was consensually produced or violently coerced?—
Brady Brickner-Wood,
New Yorker,
14 Jan. 2026
-
Workers the administration couldn’t fire were coerced into leaving on their own.—
Franklin Foer,
The Atlantic,
11 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Things got complicated at that point, given that Kern County’s district attorney was obligated to recuse herself and Atty.—
Melissa Gomez,
Los Angeles Times,
8 Jan. 2026
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Under reporting requirements to antitrust enforcers, companies are obligated to provide notice of large mergers, including hostile bids.—
Winston Cho,
HollywoodReporter,
8 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
Mackey, trusting his father, obliged, but later regretted it.—
Sasha Rogelberg,
Fortune,
14 Jan. 2026
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Rather than working with his ally Machado, Rubio was obliged to deal directly with Rodríguez, who had been hastily inaugurated as the interim leader.—
Dexter Filkins,
New Yorker,
12 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Pressured.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pressured. Accessed 20 Jan. 2026.
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