stress 1 of 2

noun

ˈstres How to pronounce stress (audio)
Definition of stressnext
1
as in pressure
the burden on one's emotional or mental well-being created by demands on one's time with a full-time job and her college courses, the young woman is under a lot of stress right now

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in emphasis
a special notice or importance given to something the company's orientation program places considerable stress on workplace safety

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

stress

2 of 2

verb

1
as in to worry
to experience concern or anxiety the restaurant manager has a tendency to stress about every little thing that goes wrong

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to emphasize
to make more apparent his bad performance only stressed what I'd been saying all along

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in to highlight
to indicate the importance of by centering attention on the doctor stressed the importance of exercise

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of stress
Noun
As the euro zone sovereign debt crisis of the early 2010s showed, market stress in one country can spread rapidly through economies that share a currency and a central bank but retain separate fiscal systems. — Jenni Reid,chloe Taylor, CNBC, 23 Oct. 2026 Research has shown that the therapeutic use of horseback riding can improve balance and coordination in people who have neurological conditions like cerebral palsy, and lessen the symptoms for veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder. — Ondine Cohane, New York Times, 23 Oct. 2026
Verb
At the same time, Becker and other experts stressed that those efforts to date have failed, and state and local elections have largely proceeded in recent weeks without incident, with millions of Americans having already cast their ballots. — Kevin Rector, Los Angeles Times, 22 Oct. 2026 The research team stressed that looking at daytime napping habits gives a much clearer picture of overall health than looking at nighttime sleep alone. — Khloe Quill, FOXNews.com, 22 Oct. 2026 See All Example Sentences for stress
Recent Examples of Synonyms for stress
  1. pressure
  2. emphasis
  3. worry
  4. emphasize
  5. highlight
  6. strain
  7. focus
  8. reinforce
Noun
  • But economic pressure won't change Iran's negotiating positions, said Karimi, the former official.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 26 Oct. 2026
  • Also, not much pressure from the Chiefs as Sam Darnold’s quick passes were often on target.
    — Blair Kerkhoff, Kansas City Star, 26 Oct. 2026
Definition of pressure
Noun
  • The Sun enters your sign today, beginning your season and putting greater emphasis on your goals, identity, presence, and personal direction.
    — Tarot.com, New York Daily News, 23 Oct. 2026
  • By contrast, recent restrictions or delays suggest a greater emphasis on managing relations with Beijing and avoiding unnecessary escalation.
    — Ningrong Liu, Fortune, 23 Oct. 2026
Definition of emphasis
Verb
  • Although officials have not released details about the cause of death, scientists agree that if it was caused by ordinary plague, the wider world has little to worry about.
    — Faye Flam, Scientific American, 27 Oct. 2026
  • Jason Henry | Bloomberg | Getty Images Anthropic’s IPO prospectus is chock-full of details for investors to celebrate — and worry about.
    — Ashley Capoot, CNBC, 27 Oct. 2026
Definition of worry
Verb
  • Both local governments filed their briefs to the Supreme Court this week, emphasizing their arguments that the bans are lawful because the AR-15 and similar weapons are not ordinary firearms.
    — Jack Birle, The Washington Examiner, 23 Oct. 2026
  • Officials emphasized that machines are tested before each election and that in most jurisdictions, there is a postelection audit that consists of a manual hand count of a sample of paper ballots.
    — Ali Swenson, Los Angeles Times, 23 Oct. 2026
Definition of emphasize
Verb
  • Despite his history with Holmes, Carreyrou said the film ultimately helped highlight some of Holmes’ contradictions.
    — Marco Quiroz-Gutierrez, Fortune, 21 Oct. 2026
  • While other members of the Biden administration have defended Becerra’s performance, his time at the helm highlighted an issue that even allies concede has bedeviled Becerra in the past, his tendency to sometimes recede into the background.
    — Ben Wieder, Los Angeles Times, 21 Oct. 2026
Definition of highlight
Noun
  • Starting linebacker Dee Winters will miss his first game of his Cowboys career after suffering an Achilles strain in the loss to the Green Bay Packers last week.
    — Nick Harris, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 24 Oct. 2026
  • Other drivers included grief, loneliness, relationship difficulties, work and financial strain, health concerns and major life decisions.
    — Gagandeep Singh, Sacbee.com, 24 Oct. 2026
Definition of strain
Noun
  • Anthropic made OpenAI's ads push the focus of its first Super Bowl campaign and pledged to keep its competing chatbot, Claude, ad free.
    — Ashley Capoot, CNBC, 21 Oct. 2026
  • Anthropic’s lobbying form lists the Collaboration on Adversarial Threats and Security Risks Act, a bill that would allow labs to coordinate with each other on security risks, as a point of focus for the company on Capitol Hill.
    — Ashley Gold, semafor.com, 21 Oct. 2026
Definition of focus
Verb
  • Mental health experts have voiced concerns about chatbots’ sycophancy, lack of clinical nuance, and ability to reinforce delusional beliefs.
    — Andrew R. Chow, Time, 22 Oct. 2026
  • Kim Yo Jong, widely viewed as the second most powerful official in Pyongyang, made the statement after visiting frontline areas where soldiers are reinforcing the border.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 21 Oct. 2026
Definition of reinforce

Browse Nearby Words

strenuously
stress
stressed
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Cite this Entry

“Stress.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/stress. Accessed 28 Oct. 2026.

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