DISTRESSES Synonyms: 135 Similar and Opposite Words

distresses 1 of 2

noun

plural of distress

as in pains

a state of great suffering of body or mind the upcoming bar exam is causing us considerable distress the survivors were in extreme distress after having been stranded on the island for a week with no food

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

distresses

2 of 2

verb

present tense third-person singular of distress

as in disturbs

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 distresses

Noun

Pain, infection, medication side effects, and other physical and emotional distresses may be expressed through shouting, intimidating gestures, kicking, pushing, or punching. — Jordan Rau, NPR, 19 July 2026

Verb

About 6 million Americans had opioid use disorder — a problematic pattern of opioid use that significantly impairs or distresses a patient — as of 2022, according to the CDC. — Amber Gaudet, Charlotte Observer, 6 May 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for distresses

Noun

In cases that are considered to be too severe — such as when a pregnant woman at the center began experiencing labor pains — those individuals are airlifted to a nearby hospital.

— ABC News, ABC News, 28 Aug. 2026
California has taken pains to eliminate coal as a source of electricity, and this would be the first coal export terminal in California — or anywhere on the West Coast.

— Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 26 Aug. 2026

Definition of pains

Verb

Traffic between somebody else's router and somebody else's laptop, say in a random coffee shop or an airport, can provide the radio field that your body disturbs to create your specific signature.

— New Atlas, New Atlas, 26 Aug. 2026
Tilling or plowing in the summer disturbs the soil's delicate ecosystem and exposes moist soil to rapid water loss.

— Mary Marlowe Leverette, Southern Living, 24 June 2026

Definition of disturbs

Verb

That sequencing bothers people who’ve spent careers being told that data systems need privacy protections designed in, not bolted on after a scandal.

— Karl W. Bickel, Baltimore Sun, 25 Aug. 2026
Kurt's key takeaways What bothers me most about this scam is that criminals are going after people who may have the fewest options to protect themselves.

— Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 24 Aug. 2026

Definition of bothers

Noun

Some residents said hope is elusive given the island’s litany of miseries – from natural disasters to a bankrupt government to a financial control board that manages funding for infrastructure.

— Isabel Rosales, CNN Money, 28 Aug. 2026
Cyclospora, an intestinal parasite, has sickened thousands of people and hospitalized hundreds with explosive diarrhea, painful cramping, or other gastrointestinal miseries.

— Emily Kay Votruba, EverydayHealth.com, 3 Aug. 2026

Definition of miseries

Verb

Instead, the market worries whether such high growth has already been fully priced into stock values or is approaching a growth inflection point.

— , CNBC, 28 Aug. 2026
The beekeeper worries the new warehouse-like facilities will raise his utility bills or change the local environment.

— Drew Hawkins, NPR, 27 Aug. 2026

Definition of worries

Verb

Scientists now are spending an increasing amount of time worrying about keeping the lights on and people employed, which ultimately distracts from time spent doing research.

— Abdullah Shihipar, STAT, 1 Sep. 2026
All the while, a clean-up crew led by Drew Starkey’s kinky, idiosyncratic hit man Cyrus follows close behind, but this is a third, more vestigial movie, which only distracts from the main event.

— Siddhant Adlakha, Variety, 31 Aug. 2026

Definition of distracts

Verb

The issue, also affecting manufacturers like Xiaomi and Xpeng, concerns unsafe emergency door-release systems.

— Peter Lyon, Forbes.com, 22 Aug. 2026
However, as someone who has been studying Antarctic krill ecology and their role in the Southern Ocean ecosystem for 16 years, what currently concerns me most is how locally concentrated that harvest has become.

— Kim S. Bernard, The Conversation, 21 Aug. 2026

Definition of concerns

Browse Nearby Words

distressed

distresses

distressful

See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

Style

“Distresses.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/distresses. Accessed 2 Sep. 2026.

Copy Citation

Synonyms of distresses

noun

verb

Example Sentences

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

dissonant

Popular in Grammar & Usage

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

A List of Most Commonly Confused Words

Why do we use apostrophes to show possession?

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?

Popular in Wordplay

The Longest Long Words List

Stay Woke

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

Even More Bird Names that Sound Like Insults (and Sometimes Are)

Popular

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

The Longest Long Words List

Stay Woke

Games & Quizzes