distress

American  

[dih-stres] / dɪˈstrɛs /

noun

1. 

   great pain, anxiety, or sorrow; acute physical or mental suffering; affliction; trouble.

   distress over his mother's illness.

   Synonyms:

   tribulation, adversity, anguish, agony

   Antonyms:

   comfort

2. a state of extreme necessity or misfortune.

   After the stock market crash, he found himself in great financial distress.

   Synonyms:

   destitution, need

3. the state of a ship or airplane requiring immediate assistance, as when on fire in transit.

4. that which causes pain, suffering, trouble, danger, etc..

   His willful disobedience was a distress to his parents.

5. liability or exposure to pain, suffering, trouble, etc.; danger.

   a damsel in distress.

6. Law.

   1. the legal seizure and detention of the goods of another as security or satisfaction for debt, etc.; the act of distraining.

   2. the thing seized in distraining.

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adjective

1. afflicted with or suffering distress.

   distress livestock; distress wheat.

2. caused by or indicative of distress or hardship.

   distress prices; distress borrowing.

verb (used with object)

• distresses,
  present (3rd person singular)
• distressed,
  past participle,  past
• distressing
  present participle

1. to afflict with great pain, anxiety, or sorrow; trouble; worry; bother.

   It distresses Grandpa when you bring up the war.

2. to subject to pressure, stress, or strain; embarrass or exhaust by strain.

   to be distressed by excessive work.

3. to compel by pain or force of circumstances.

   Her faithlessness distressed him into ending their marriage.

4. to dent, scratch, or stain (furniture, lumber, or the like) so as to give an appearance of age.

   She used an old bicycle chain to distress the surface of the table before applying a deep stain.

distress British  

/ dɪˈstrɛs /

verb

1. to cause mental pain to; upset badly

2. (usually passive) to subject to financial or other trouble

3. to damage (esp furniture), as by scratching or denting it, in order to make it appear older than it is

4. law a less common word for distrain

5. archaic to compel

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noun

1. mental pain; anguish

2. the act of distressing or the state of being distressed

3. physical or financial trouble

4. (of a ship, aircraft, etc) in dire need of help

5. law

   1. the seizure and holding of property as security for payment of or in satisfaction of a debt, claim, etc; distraint

   2. the property thus seized

   3. ( as modifier )

      distress merchandise

Synonym Usage

See sorrow.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• distressfulness
  noun
• predistress
  noun
• distressful
  adjective
• distressing
  adjective
• distressfully
  adverb
• distressingly
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Participles

• distressing
  present
• distressed
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• distress
  simple
• distresses
  simple
• have distressed
  perfect
• has distressed
  perfect
• am distressing
  progressive
• are distressing
  progressive
• is distressing
  progressive
• have been distressing
  perfect progressive
• has been distressing
  perfect progressive

Past

• distressed
  simple
• had distressed
  perfect
• was distressing
  progressive
• were distressing
  progressive
• had been distressing
  perfect progressive

Future

• will distress
  simple
• will have distressed
  perfect
• will be distressing
  progressive
• will have been distressing
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of distress

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English noun destresse, distresse, from Anglo-French distresse, destresse, Old French, from unattested Vulgar Latin districtia, equivalent to Latin district(us) “exercise of justice” + noun suffix -ia; the verb developed from the noun; see origin at district, -ia

Explanation

If you are in distress, you are in trouble. You're hurting — either physically or mentally. See the word stress hanging out at the end of distress? There's a good reason for that. The noun distress refers to a state of severe anxiety or strain, often brought about by failing to study for an exam, harassing grizzly bears, or borrowing your sister's clothes without asking. When used as a verb, to distress means to cause all that pain, suffering and anxiety — in other words, to stress somebody out.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

distress distresses distressed distressing

There is still a graphic sense of his distress at walking behind her coffin, with Prince Harry mentioning Earl Spencer's opposition.

From BBC ● Sep. 18, 2026

Both investigations agreed that SVB failed after unrealized losses on its portfolio of securities caused financial distress for the bank that its executives weren’t prepared to handle.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 18, 2026

They examined several indicators of well-being, including depression symptoms, psychological distress, self-rated health, employment, and marital status.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 18, 2026

The rescue took place Sunday morning, with Engine 50 responding to a call of an animal in distress, Dowd said.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 17, 2026

It took exactly one more minute before he heard the distinct groan of a cow in distress on the other side of the stable.

From "Beasts of Prey" by Ayana Gray

Sleeping out in the stifling summer heat leaves her exhausted, but what distresses her more is not knowing when or how this situation will end.

From Barron's ● Aug. 4, 2026

“It distresses us to return work which is not perfect,” the note read.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 11, 2024

Catherine Dreher, vice chair of the Missouri Libertarian Party, said her 18-year-old son has dealt with mental health issues, recently left home and wants to transition to a woman, which distresses her.

From Seattle Times ● Mar. 20, 2023

He would like to be able to move on because every time something about the case comes up, it distresses his daughter all over again.

From BBC ● Aug. 30, 2022

I write again as I am in the utmost distresses.

From "The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Volume II: The Kingdom on the Waves" by M.T. Anderson

The development pocket landed on California’s distressed insurance market list because it falls within Placer County, which stretches 65 miles east into the severe fire zones of the rugged Sierra Nevada.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 20, 2026

"He is a man who is distressed about all this," Ford added.

From BBC ● Sep. 11, 2026

Caring for a single, distressed marine mammal can take significant time and resources.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 8, 2026

Tommy Hill, managing partner of a hedge fund that focuses on distressed companies, saw Moderna as an opportunity.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 22, 2026

There were so many creatures, of such strange and wondrous shapes; although the conditions they were kept in distressed him, Julius could never have enough of seeing them.

From "Tiger, Tiger" by Lynne Reid Banks

The UK government said it also sympathises with "anyone facing difficult and distressing circumstances during fertility treatment."

From BBC ● Sep. 9, 2026

Sir Gavin Williamson, MP for Stone, Great Wyrley and Penkridge, described it as "extremely distressing news" which had caused a lot of concern in the area.

From BBC ● Sep. 7, 2026

Clancy's televised five-week trial, which featured more than 80 witnesses and days of distressing testimony, has sparked debate in the United States over maternal mental health.

From Barron's ● Sep. 4, 2026

The combination of text and image recurs throughout Lynch’s paintings as well, where captions often make distressing narratives explicit.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 3, 2026

The watch went into the maw of the vacuum cleaner with a distressing clank that the maid did not even seem to hear.

From "The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane" by Kate DiCamillo