bears (down)

verb

present tense third-person singular of bear (down)
as in weighs (upon)

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Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for bears (down)
  1. pressures
  2. compresses
  3. squashes
Verb
  • When Andrew Dismukes’ character repeatedly pressures his dad to try the titular dish, Gillis steps in to put an end to the interrogation.
    — Anna Tingley, Variety, 11 Oct. 2026
  • The feature is designed to help with active social engineering scams, where someone pressures or guides you into doing something yourself.
    — Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 8 Oct. 2026
Definition of pressures
Verb
  • High-rises are expected to settle as their enormous weight compresses the ground beneath them, but that settlement is expected to stop soon after construction.
    — Denise Hruby, Miami Herald, 19 Oct. 2026
  • Deal teams that prepare before a potential transaction (something my company has created a checklist for) can gain an advantage as technology compresses timelines.
    — Rusty Wiley, Forbes.com, 1 Oct. 2026
Definition of compresses
Verb
  • Designed to cut down on bulk, these cubes use a handy zipper system that squashes down the clothing inside each cube.
    — Lydia Mansel, Travel + Leisure, 29 Aug. 2026
  • Luckily, this deal squashes that qualm by knocking over $300 from the sticker shocker!
    — Kelsey Fogarty, PC Magazine, 6 July 2026
Definition of squashes
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.

Browse Nearby Words

bears a hand
bears (down)
bears (down on)
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Cite this Entry

“Bears (down).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bears%20%28down%29. Accessed 22 Oct. 2026.

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