pressure

American  

[presh-er] / ˈprɛʃ ər /

noun

• pressures
  plural

1. the exertion of force upon a surface by an object, fluid, etc., in contact with it.

   the pressure of earth against a wall.

2. Physics. force per unit area. P

3. Meteorology. atmospheric pressure.

4. Electricity. electromotive force.

5. the state of being pressed or compressed.

6. harassment; oppression.

   the pressures of daily life.

7. a constraining or compelling force or influence.

   the social pressures of city life;

   financial pressure.

8. urgency, as of affairs or business.

   He works well under pressure.

9. Obsolete. that which is impressed.

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verb (used with object)

• pressures,
  present (3rd person singular)
• pressured,
  past participle,  past
• pressuring
  present participle

1. to force (someone) toward a particular end; influence.

   They pressured him into accepting the contract.

2. pressurize.

pressure British  

/ ˈprɛʃə /

noun

1. the state of pressing or being pressed

2. the exertion of force by one body on the surface of another

3. a moral force that compels

   to bring pressure to bear

4. an urgent claim or demand or series of urgent claims or demands

   to work under pressure

5. a burdensome condition that is hard to bear

   the pressure of grief

6.  p.   P.  the normal force applied to a unit area of a surface, usually measured in pascals (newtons per square metre), millibars, torr, or atmospheres

7. short for atmospheric pressure blood pressure

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verb

1. (tr) to constrain or compel, as by the application of moral force

2. another word for pressurize

pressure Scientific  

/ prĕsh′ər /

1. The force per unit area that one region of a gas, liquid, or solid exerts on another. Pressure is usually measured in Pascal units, atmospheres, or pounds per square inch.

2. ◆ A substance is said to have negative pressure if some other substance exerts more force per unit area on it than vice versa. Its value is simply the negative of the pressure exerted by the other substance.

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pressure Cultural  

1. The force exerted on a given area. (See atmospheric pressure.)

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Discover More

The most familiar measure of pressure is psi (pounds per square inch), used to rate pressure in automobile and bicycle tires.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• nonpressure
  noun
• superpressure
  noun
• underpressure
  noun
• interpressure
  adjective
• pressureless
  adjective
• unpressured
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• pressures
  plural

Participles

• pressuring
  present
• pressured
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• pressure
  simple
• pressures
  simple
• have pressured
  perfect
• has pressured
  perfect
• am pressuring
  progressive
• are pressuring
  progressive
• is pressuring
  progressive
• have been pressuring
  perfect progressive
• has been pressuring
  perfect progressive

Past

• pressured
  simple
• had pressured
  perfect
• was pressuring
  progressive
• were pressuring
  progressive
• had been pressuring
  perfect progressive

Future

• will pressure
  simple
• will have pressured
  perfect
• will be pressuring
  progressive
• will have been pressuring
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of pressure

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English (noun), from Latin pressūra; see press ¹, -ure

Explanation

You feel pressure when something presses on you –- whether a physical force or a stressful situation. If you don't crack under the pressure of witnessing the accident, you will calmly apply pressure on the driver's wound until help arrives. The pressure of a looming deadline might cause you to finally get to work on an assignment. Pressure can also be a verb, like when your friend pressures you to go rock climbing despite your fear of heights. The rocks you would rather not climb were formed long ago by extreme heat and pressure. While climbing, your friend's blood pressure may rise right along with yours when she sees how clumsy you are.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

pressure pressures pressured pressuring

Adding to pressure on bonds was a $6 billion government buyback that disappointed traders who had expected a bigger number.

From Barron's ● Sep. 11, 2026

Top law firms are under pressure from all sides, with aggressive poaching of rainmakers, the pressure of artificial intelligence and less-loyal clients.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 11, 2026

Existing home sales fell to their lowest level in more than a year, declining 2% in August over the previous month, as rising mortgage rates pressure potential homebuyers.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 10, 2026

Now, hiring is much weaker than average and there is less pressure to recruit - giving employees less leverage to demand higher pay.

From BBC ● Sep. 10, 2026

“It was…like all that pressure, but then it…it got way worse and worse and then…” Sorry for all the dots, but it was hard to figure out how to say it.

From "Popcorn" by Rob Harrell

When the Bank of England meets later next week, it is expected to try to look both at current price pressures and the wider economic picture.

From BBC ● Sep. 10, 2026

“With inflation above target for a protracted period, there is a risk of broader price pressures taking hold,” Fed governor Michael Barr said last week.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 9, 2026

Holiday lets "can generate important economic and social benefits, especially for households struggling to make ends meet" but "they may also aggravate housing demand pressures in some constrained local housing markets," the EU draft read.

From Barron's ● Sep. 9, 2026

Dish argued that appointing a trustee would introduce significant disruption and cost to the case and exacerbate liquidity pressures.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 8, 2026

A more practical possibility is that such low-mass black holes might have been formed in the high temperatures and pressures of the very early universe.

From "A Brief History of Time: And Other Essays" by Stephen Hawking

Chong said that "Beijing seems highly confident of its ability to push back successfully against the US", were it pressured.

From Barron's ● Aug. 28, 2026

Beyond the talk about medical diagnosis, the case has also kicked off a larger social media conversation about how pressured, isolated and overworked mothers feel.

From Salon ● Aug. 26, 2026

And though the US and Pakistan's oil firms have pressured Pakistan's government to clamp down on the practice, it has struggled to police remote parts of the 900km border.

From BBC ● Aug. 25, 2026

Along with high gas prices in the U.S., shoppers in Europe and the Middle East have been especially pressured, he said.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 25, 2026

There were a half-dozen people who had been jailed or imprisoned with Ralph Myers whom Ralph had told he was being pressured to give false testimony against Walter McMillian.

From "Just Mercy" by Bryan Stevenson

In 2021, it enacted a so-called news media bargaining code aimed at pressuring Meta and Google into commercial deals with publishers.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 8, 2026

Companies say they are committing to paying for these upgrades, and the Trump administration is pressuring them to fully cover those costs, but it remains to be seen how these complicated deals will play out.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 4, 2026

A global bond-market rout is pressuring stocks on Tuesday, sending major U.S. indexes lower for a third consecutive session.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 18, 2026

Ottawa has reportedly offered concessions such as pressuring provinces to put US alcohol and wine back on their shelves, Canadian media said.

From Barron's ● Aug. 18, 2026

In England, foreign secretary Anthony Eden said he “deeply regretted” the news, and then set about pressuring the French not to overreact.

From "The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics" by Daniel James Brown

Related Words

• adversity
• burden
• constraint
• force
• hardship
• heat
• influence
• power
• strain
• stress
• tension
• trouble
• weight