impresses

1. 1
   verb

   Third-person singular simple present indicative of impress.

   The sleek new design impresses clients as soon as they walk in.

   She rarely speaks in meetings, yet she impresses her colleagues with every remark.

   Note

   Spelled with -es because the stem already ends in a double s, as in presses and dresses. The verb works in three patterns. It can take a person as object (the design impresses clients). It can stand with no object at all (her work always impresses). With on or upon, it means pressing something into a surface or fixing it in a mind, which keeps the image of stamping alive.

   Whatever the critics say, her work always impresses.

   The sergeant impresses the same rule upon every new recruit.

2. 2
   noun

   Plural of impress.

   Collectors study the impresses left by antique printing blocks to date old documents.

   The medallion carried two overlapping impresses from successive owners.

   Note

   The noun behind this plural covers both ends of the pressing: the seal or stamp that does the work and the image it leaves behind. It can also mean a mark of distinction, and in heraldry a device also called an impresa. Context usually tells tool from trace. The same spelling serves the verb's he-she-it form, so the impresses of a seal is a noun, while she impresses is a verb.

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