as in pressure
the burden on one's emotional or mental well-being created by demands on one's time
under a lot of tension right now about her decision not to go to college
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Recent Examples of tension
Allison Degrushe, StyleCaster, 19 June 2026
Collin County District Attorney's Office The case has drawn national attention and has been marked by controversy, racial tension, and threats, particularly on social media.
—Matthew Davisson, CBS News, 19 June 2026
Katie Bowlby, Country Living, 29 July 2023
In a lengthy chat with host Stephen Colbert, the director and actress spoke about everything from firing Shia LaBeouf to tension with star Florence Pugh to whether Harry Styles actually spit on Chris Pine.
—Emily Zemler, Rolling Stone, 27 Sep. 2022
See All Example Sentences for tension
Noun
Amid the ongoing tension, Sudeikis has shifted his focus to co-parenting his and Wilde’s children, Otis, 12, and Daisy, 9.
—Allison Degrushe, StyleCaster, 19 June 2026
Collin County District Attorney's Office The case has drawn national attention and has been marked by controversy, racial tension, and threats, particularly on social media.
—Matthew Davisson, CBS News, 19 June 2026
Verb
Advertisement - Continue Reading Below 13 Perfectly Nice Neighbors
Salma, a Bangladeshi woman, moves to a new neighborhood with her family, and immediately tensions with their neighbors run high after a woman is caught vandalizing their anti-racist flag.
—Katie Bowlby, Country Living, 29 July 2023
In a lengthy chat with host Stephen Colbert, the director and actress spoke about everything from firing Shia LaBeouf to tension with star Florence Pugh to whether Harry Styles actually spit on Chris Pine.
—Emily Zemler, Rolling Stone, 27 Sep. 2022
See All Example Sentences for tension
Recent Examples of Synonyms for tension
Noun
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Under the federal No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, schools faced mounting pressure to raise test scores, creating a fundamental tension between learning time and and play time.—
Cierra Morgan,
Los Angeles Times,
18 June 2026
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Turbulent emotions can stir up physical stress when the Leo moon puts pressure on Mars.—
USA TODAY,
USA Today,
18 June 2026
Verb
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Be a good child, do what they’re told, be the best child, a tremble in their hands, say nothing, tensed for the knock on the door.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
17 June 2026
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Instead, he was intrigued by a scene in which Back visibly tensed up after the producers told him he was suspected of being Satoshi.—
Frank Landymore,
Futurism,
9 Apr. 2026
Noun
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Two children at a Redlands elementary school faced racial harassment, discrimination and teasing for months, resulting in them being diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder, their mother alleged in a lawsuit filed against the school district.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
16 June 2026
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My advice to early career scientists is to follow your passion and not be discouraged by the current stress on the system.—
Rachel Nuwer,
Scientific American,
16 June 2026
Verb
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Varsho tightened the score an inning later with his home run off Trent Thornton.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
20 June 2026
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The European Central Bank was the first major central bank to raise interest rates last week, its first tightening move in nearly three years.—
Anniek Bao,
CNBC,
19 June 2026
Noun
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As of February, the Australian mainland and New Zealand didn’t have any cases of the H5N1 strain, which has spread among birds worldwide and affected some mammals.—
Kathleen Magramo,
CNN Money,
19 June 2026
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The team announced before Thursday night’s 5-0 loss to the Athletics that the 11-time All-Star was put on the 10-day IL due to a right hamstring strain.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
19 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Tension.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/tension. Accessed 22 Jun. 2026.
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