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Distress

//dɪˈstɹɛs// noun, verb

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    Physical or emotional discomfort, suffering, or alarm, particularly of a more acute nature. countable, uncountable

    "To heighten his distress, he is approached by his wife, and bitterly upbraided for his perfidy in concealing from her his former connexions (with that unhappy girl who is here present with her child, the innocent offspring of her amours, fainting at the sight of his misfortunes, being unable to relieve him farther), and plunging her into those difficulties she never shall be able to surmount."

  2. 2
    the seizure and holding of property as security for payment of a debt or satisfaction of a claim wordnet
  3. 3
    A cause of such discomfort. countable, uncountable
  4. 4
    psychological suffering wordnet
  5. 5
    Serious danger. countable, uncountable

    "I immediately considered that this must be some ship in distress, and that they had some comrade, or some other ship in company, and fired these gun for signals of distress, and to obtain help."

Show 5 more definitions
  1. 6
    extreme physical pain wordnet
  2. 7
    An aversive state of stress to which a person cannot fully adapt. countable, uncountable
  3. 8
    a state of adversity (danger or affliction or need) wordnet
  4. 9
    A seizing of property without legal process to force payment of a debt. countable, uncountable
  5. 10
    The thing taken by distraining; that which is seized to procure satisfaction. countable, uncountable

    "If he were not paid, he would straight go and take a distress of goods and cattle."

Verb
  1. 1
    To cause strain or anxiety to someone.

    "She respects me, no doubt, but has no longer any passionate feeling for me, and my death will distress her without plunging her in despair."

  2. 2
    cause mental pain to wordnet
  3. 3
    To retain someone’s property against the payment of a debt; to distrain.

    "This power of distress, as anciently used, became as oppressive as the feudal forfeiture. It was as hard for the tenant to be stripped in an instant of all his goods, for arrears of rent, as to be turned out of the possession of his farm."

  4. 4
    bring into difficulties or distress, especially financial hardship wordnet
  5. 5
    To treat a new object to give it an appearance of age.

    "a pair of distressed jeans"

Etymology

Etymology 1

The verb is from Middle English distressen, from Old French destrecier (“to restrain, constrain, put in straits, afflict, distress”); compare French détresse. Ultimately from Medieval Latin as if *districtiō, an assumed frequentative form of Latin distringō (“to pull asunder, stretch out”), from dis- (“apart”) + stringō (“to draw tight, strain”). The noun is from Middle English distresse, from Old French destrece, ultimately also from Latin distringō.

Etymology 2

The verb is from Middle English distressen, from Old French destrecier (“to restrain, constrain, put in straits, afflict, distress”); compare French détresse. Ultimately from Medieval Latin as if *districtiō, an assumed frequentative form of Latin distringō (“to pull asunder, stretch out”), from dis- (“apart”) + stringō (“to draw tight, strain”). The noun is from Middle English distresse, from Old French destrece, ultimately also from Latin distringō.

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