1
as in uneasy
marked by or causing agitation or uncomfortable feelings
the distressful period during which we waited to learn who had made the cut
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2
as in tragic
of a kind to cause great distress
the distressful living conditions in the refugee camp
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Recent Examples of distressful
And yet behind the distressful scene, a young man continues to butcher an animal.
—
Kaely Monahan, The Arizona Republic, 27 Mar. 2024
Despite the distressful news of Houston’s death that day, the event went forward to create a space for guests to mourn.
—Elizabeth Wagmeister, CNN, 2 Feb. 2024
Justice Harry Blackmun, who wrote for the Roe-affirming majority in 1973, included a brief list of the potential detriments of forcing women to carry pregnancies to term: Maternity, or additional offspring, may force upon the woman a distressful life and future.
—Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor, The New Yorker, 6 July 2022
The definition of trauma is anything distressful.
—Julia M. Chan, CNN, 15 Mar. 2022
But the results, Mr. Chancellor observes, were not as distressful for the rich as a medieval canonist might have hoped.
—Adam Rowe, WSJ, 12 Aug. 2022
Kaely Monahan, The Arizona Republic, 27 Mar. 2024
Despite the distressful news of Houston’s death that day, the event went forward to create a space for guests to mourn.
—Elizabeth Wagmeister, CNN, 2 Feb. 2024
Justice Harry Blackmun, who wrote for the Roe-affirming majority in 1973, included a brief list of the potential detriments of forcing women to carry pregnancies to term: Maternity, or additional offspring, may force upon the woman a distressful life and future.
—Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor, The New Yorker, 6 July 2022
The definition of trauma is anything distressful.
—Julia M. Chan, CNN, 15 Mar. 2022
But the results, Mr. Chancellor observes, were not as distressful for the rich as a medieval canonist might have hoped.
—Adam Rowe, WSJ, 12 Aug. 2022
Recent Examples of Synonyms for distressful
Adjective
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Today, hydrogen bombs have replaced atom bombs in most arsenals, creating a world of uneasy standoffs among nuclear foes.—
William J. Broad,
New York Times,
19 May 2025
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With the rage virus still raging, a group of survivors, including a husband and wife played by Jodie Comer and Aaron Taylor-Johnson, lives in uneasy isolation on a fortified island — until one of them crosses the causeway into whatever’s left of the mainland.—
Greg Braxton,
Los Angeles Times,
16 May 2025
Adjective
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Mexicans mourned the deaths of two sailors while authorities in Mexico and New York worked to unravel the mystery of the tragic crash of the Cuauhtémoc Training Ship into the Brooklyn Bridge.—
John Bacon,
USA Today,
21 May 2025
-
For a moment, while arguing with the doorman, the glassy veneer that Fotis wore all through these tragic hours fell away.—
Rich Cohen,
Rolling Stone,
20 May 2025
Adjective
-
Nothing has officially happened yet, but the tension is disturbing with the consequences potentially devastating.—
Mac Engel,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
27 May 2025
-
That’s a quite disturbing possibility since AGI could wield such an act on a scale of immense magnitude and with globally adverse consequences.—
Lance Eliot,
Forbes.com,
24 May 2025
Adjective
-
The timing of Correa’s five-game absence for a concussion sustained in Baltimore on May 15 was unfortunate.—
Dan Hayes,
New York Times,
27 May 2025
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This is especially unfortunate because the plot itself is quite harrowing.—
Paul A. Thompson,
Pitchfork,
22 May 2025
Adjective
-
Denzel Washington confronts photographer in tense moment at Cannes Film Festival Watson did not scrimp in the glamour department for her 2013 Cannes debut either.—
Edward Segarra,
USA Today,
23 May 2025
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The posts tee up a potentially tense exchange between U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer and his European counterpart later Friday morning.—
Kevin Breuninger,
CNBC,
23 May 2025
Adjective
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For Armstrong, capturing the humanity of these men paints a more unsettling portrait than pure billionaire-trolling might.—
Charlie Warzel,
The Atlantic,
30 May 2025
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The main case under investigation is unsettling and satisfyingly intricate, with ample thematic connections to Morck, Akram and Rose’s respective forms of psychological damage.—
Daniel Fienberg,
HollywoodReporter,
29 May 2025
Adjective
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In the novel’s historical re-creation, is there an anxious note to Americans now losing themselves in accommodation?—
David Denby,
New Yorker,
23 May 2025
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An inaccurate diagnosis might lead to unnecessary or risky treatment, and a false positive can cause stress by requiring additional tests and anxious waits for results.—
Max Votek,
Forbes.com,
22 May 2025
Adjective
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The price of gold tends to move when markets get nervous – and so does the gold.—
Ken Roberts,
Forbes.com,
24 May 2025
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It should also be noted that Demings is more than a little nervous right now about making any public promises about helping to finance a baseball stadium.—
Mike Bianchi,
The Orlando Sentinel,
22 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Distressful.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/distressful. Accessed 3 Jun. 2025.
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