pressure

Pluralpressures

Formspressures, pressuring, pressured

1. 1
   outside demandsnouncountable or uncountable

   A strong influence, demand, or burden of any kind that pushes on someone, as from other people, poverty, or circumstances.

   Social pressure to conform can quietly shape the choices people make.

   He resisted the pressure to abandon his principles for an easier path.

   UsageUsually put pressure on someone to do something. People work under pressure or give in to pressure.

   Similarweight

   Note

   Here the push is figurative, and almost anything can supply it: the pressure of poverty, of taxes, of motives on the mind, of civilization itself. Macaulay could write of a time "when the pressure of danger was not felt."

2. 2
   physics measurenouncountable or uncountable

   Force per unit area; the force applied over a surface divided by the size of that area.

   Atmospheric pressure decreases as you climb to higher altitudes.

   The gauge measured the pressure of the gas inside the sealed container.

   UsagePressure is usually high or low, and it rises or drops: low tire pressure, high blood pressure.

   Note

   A physicist's quantity rather than a push: force divided by the area it acts on, measured in pascals, where one pascal is one newton per square meter. The distinction matters because the same force spread over a smaller area produces greater pressure. That is why a blade cuts where a flat palm does not. Keep the everyday pressing for the push itself. Source

   Checked 5 Nov 2026 · 4 facts

   • Physical pressure is force per unit area. openstax.org
   • Pressure is measured in pascals, with one pascal equal to one newton per square meter. bipm.org
   • For a fixed force, reducing the area increases pressure. openstax.org
   • A blade's concentrated pressure explains its ability to cut compared with a flat palm. en.wikipedia.org
3. 3
   pressing forcenoununcountable

   A force applied against a surface by something pressing or pushing on it.

   She applied firm pressure to the cut with a clean cloth until the bleeding stopped.

   He applied steady pressure to the wound to slow the bleeding.

   UsageThe usual verb is apply: apply pressure to a wound, a seam, a stuck door. Also put pressure on it.

   Similarforce

   Note

   Unlike the physicist's measured quantity, it names the push itself, not a ratio of force to area.

4. 4
   verbtransitive

   To strongly urge someone, or to exert force or influence on them, in order to make them act.

   Activists pressured the company to change its labor practices.

   Lobbyists routinely pressure lawmakers to vote in their favor.

   UsageTwo patterns: pressure someone into doing something, or pressure someone to do it. Both suggest unwelcome insistence.

   Similarpush, pressurize, urge, coerce, force

5. 5
   stressnoununcountable

   A feeling of stress or strain caused by demands, deadlines or difficult circumstances.

   The pressure of the looming deadline kept the whole team working late.

   Negotiators worked under intense pressure as the ceasefire deadline approached.

   UsagePeople feel pressure or are under pressure; the pressure of names the cause: the pressure of a deadline.

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