distress

2 entries found for distress.
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distress[1,noun] distress[2,transitive verb]

Main Entry: ¹dis·tress
Pronunciation: di-'stres
Function: noun
Etymology: Middle English destresse, from Anglo-French destresce, from Vulgar Latin *districtia, from Latin districtus, past participle of distringere
1 a : seizure and detention of the goods of another as pledge or to obtain satisfaction of a claim by the sale of the goods seized b : something that is distrained
2 a : pain or suffering affecting the body, a bodily part, or the mind : TROUBLE <gastric distress> b : a painful situation : MISFORTUNE
3 : a state of danger or desperate need <a ship in distress>
synonyms DISTRESS, SUFFERING, MISERY, AGONY mean the state of being in great trouble. DISTRESS implies an external and usually temporary cause of great physical or mental strain and stress <the hurricane put everyone in great distress>. SUFFERING implies conscious endurance of pain or distress <the suffering of famine victims>. MISERY stresses the unhappiness attending especially sickness, poverty, or loss <the homeless live with misery every day>. AGONY suggests pain too intense to be borne <in agony over the death of their child>.