distressed 1 of 2

adjective

Definition of distressednext
1
as in troubled

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2
as in depressed

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Dissimilar Words

distressed

2 of 2

verb

past tense of distress
as in alarmed
to trouble the mind of; to make uneasy don't let all the bad news distress you

Synonyms & Similar Words

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 distressed
Adjective
There are also distressed zombies, and those that are just surviving, but the general definition of a zombie is clear, Kyle Walters, PitchBook’s private equity analyst, told Fortune. — Allie Garfinkle, Fortune, 25 Aug. 2026 The company also says distressed callers got their calls answered up to 40 seconds faster on average. — Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 25 Aug. 2026
Verb
Denim shirts were slim and distressed with markings and patchwork. — Angela Velasquez, Footwear News, 9 July 2026 Some users were distressed last year after OpenAI made changes that made the bot less people-pleasing. — Aria Bendix, NBC news, 1 June 2026 See All Example Sentences for distressed
Recent Examples of Synonyms for distressed
  1. troubled
  2. depressed
  3. alarmed
  4. agitated
  5. reduced
  6. disturbed
  7. ruined
  8. distracted
Adjective
  • The engaging biopic tracks Davidson's troubled upbringing to finding a way as an adult to deal with his condition and discover needed confidence.
    — Brian Truitt, USA Today, 28 Aug. 2026
  • Watching myself in the insightful new doc Boorman and the Devil, about the troubled 1977 sequel to The Exorcist, was a very strange experience.
    — Britina Cheng, Vulture, 28 Aug. 2026
Definition of troubled
Adjective
  • Lindsay Clancy was depressed, prosecutor says During more than four weeks of testimony, jurors heard differing views from medical experts about Clancy’s mental state after Callan’s birth.
    — Michael Casey, Chicago Tribune, 27 Aug. 2026
  • Many established theatrical distributors are also wary of the current depressed market for documentaries.
    — Anne Thompson, IndieWire, 27 Aug. 2026
Definition of depressed
Verb
  • California Forever has increasingly pitched the Solano Shipyard as part of a broader effort to rebuild the US maritime industry, a priority among both Democrats and Republicans alarmed over its decline.
    — Bloomberg, Mercury News, 27 Aug. 2026
  • The world’s most powerful economies are increasingly alarmed by their declining birthrates, and there’s no shortage of theories on why.
    — Eleanor Pringle, Fortune, 23 Aug. 2026
Definition of alarmed
Adjective
  • Officers described the videos recorded by that camera, writing that Westman seemed agitated after a visit with family and at times sobbed before driving by the church and school the night before the attack.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 27 Aug. 2026
  • This has driven some agitated investors to see parallels between the current market and the conditions leading up to the dot-com crash of 2000-2002, when the overall S&P 500 lost nearly half its value.
    — Joe D'Allegro, CNBC, 22 Aug. 2026
Definition of agitated
Adjective
  • Inadequate planting holes or wrong-sized containers cause plants to wilt and may result in damaged foliage and reduced flowering.
    — Barbara Gillette, The Spruce, 30 Aug. 2026
  • Summary Several investor rights firms are threatening class actions against into Suja Life after its stock plummeted following disappointing Q2 earnings and reduced guidance, attributed to grocery channel weakness.
    — Pamela N. Danziger, Forbes.com, 29 Aug. 2026
Definition of reduced
Verb
  • As a parent who has purchased my share of scary Halloween costumes, I was particularly disturbed by the controversy now engulfing Target.
    — Michelle Singletary, Washington Post, 26 Aug. 2026
  • If disturbed, asbestos’ microscopic crystalline fibers get into the air, where they can be inhaled, cause lung scarring and lead to fatal cancers.
    — Idaho Statesman, Idaho Statesman, 25 Aug. 2026
Definition of disturbed
Adjective
  • Sitting on the rim of his consciousness was always cataclysm, the muted whisper of a ruined world.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 10 July 2026
Definition of ruined
Verb
  • You’re not distracted by the clients waiting behind you or the sense that someone is watching and waiting for your chair to open up.
    — Tiana Randall, Forbes.com, 22 Aug. 2026
  • If it is blocked, both studios could emerge from the litigation having spent a year distracted and constrained while the rest of the industry moved forward.
    — Cory Jacobson, HollywoodReporter, 21 Aug. 2026
Definition of distracted

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Cite this Entry

“Distressed.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/distressed. Accessed 1 Sep. 2026.

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