pressing

1 of 2

adjective

press·​ing ˈpre-siŋ 

1

: urgently important : critical

a pressing issue

2

: earnest, warm

pressingly

ˈpre-siŋ-lē 

adverb

pressing

2 of 2

present participle of press entry 2, press entry 3

Synonyms of pressing

Adjective

• urgent
• acute

Examples of pressing in a Sentence

Adjective

a pressing need for reform

she had pressing business on the other side of town

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

That’s an increasingly pressing question in light of the spate of rogue AI incidents that have hit OpenAI and Anthropic this summer. — Jeremy Kahn, Fortune, 8 Sep. 2026

The client question feels more pressing than the hiring decision. — Jonathan Weeks, Forbes.com, 8 Sep. 2026

The event brought together artists, curators, museum directors, market insiders, and more to discuss the most pressing issues facing Latinx art in the art world and how to continue to grow its infrastructure. — Maximilíano Durón, ARTnews.com, 4 Sep. 2026

Ahead of each year’s Pacific leaders summit, many of the 18 member states and territories cite climate change as the most pressing discussion topic. — ABC News, 3 Sep. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

Adjective

1591, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing pressing

• flesh-pressing

Rhymes for pressing

• blessing
• dressing
• guessing
• messing
• stressing
• accessing
• addressing
• assessing
• caressing
• compressing
• confessing
• depressing

Kids Definition

pressing

adjective

press·​ing ˈpres-iŋ 

: needing one's immediate attention

a pressing issue

pressingly

-iŋ-lē 

adverb