What does "press" mean?
An instance of applying pressure; an instance of pressing.
Press
name, noun, verb
name, noun, verb ·1 syllable ·Top 500 ·Elementary level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: An instance of applying pressure; an instance of pressing.
- Grammar: press is listed as name, noun, verb.
- Nearest alternatives: accelerate, accosting, adjure, adpressed.
- Useful contrasts: dabbing, destroy, dial.
- Usage evidence: Don't press your opinions on me.
How to use "press"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "press" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "press" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "press" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "press" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "press" is acting as name, noun, verb in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "accelerate" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
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Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "press", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 An instance of applying pressure; an instance of pressing. countable, uncountable
"Connecting to the service is almost idiot proof and takes just a few button presses."
- 2 the act of pressing; the exertion of pressure wordnet
- 3 A device used to apply pressure to an item. countable
"a flower press"
- 4 a weightlift in which the barbell is lifted to shoulder height and then smoothly lifted overhead wordnet
- 5 A crowd. uncountable
"And he sought to see Jesus who he was; and could not for the press, because he was little of stature."
Show 16 more definitions
- 6 any machine that exerts pressure to form or shape or cut materials or extract liquids or compress solids wordnet
- 7 A printing machine. countable
"Stop the presses!"
- 8 a machine used for printing wordnet
- 9 The print-based media (both the people and the newspapers). collective, uncountable
"according to a member of the press"
- 10 clamp to prevent wooden rackets from warping when not in use wordnet
- 11 A publisher. countable
- 12 a tall piece of furniture that provides storage space for clothes; has a door and rails or hooks for hanging clothes wordnet
- 13 An enclosed storage space (e.g. closet, cupboard). countable, especially
"Put the cups in the press."
- 14 the print media responsible for gathering and publishing news in the form of newspapers or magazines wordnet
- 15 An exercise in which weight is forced away from the body by extension of the arms or legs. countable
"This is the fourth set of benchpresses. There will be five more; then there will be five sets of presses on an inclined bench[…]."
- 16 a dense crowd of people wordnet
- 17 An additional bet in a golf match that duplicates an existing (usually losing) wager in value, but begins even at the time of the bet. countable
"He can even the match with a press."
- 18 the state of demanding notice or attention wordnet
- 19 Pure, unfermented grape juice. countable
"I would like some Concord press with my meal tonight."
- 20 A commission to force men into public service, particularly into the navy. countable, uncountable
"I have misused the king's press."
- 21 In personology, any environmental factor that arouses a need in the individual. countable, uncountable
"The environmental comfort category is illustrative of cases in which there are low environmental presses matched against a number of personal competences."
Verb
- 1 To exert weight or force against, to act upon with force or weight; to exert pressure upon. ambitransitive
- 2 ask for or request earnestly wordnet
- 3 To activate a button or key by exerting a downward or forward force on it, and then releasing it. transitive
- 4 force or impel in an indicated direction wordnet
- 5 To compress, squeeze. transitive
"to press fruit for the purpose of extracting the juice"
Show 25 more definitions
- 6 lift weights wordnet
- 7 To clasp, hold in an embrace. transitive
"With tears and ſmiles ſhe took her ſon, and preſs'd / Th' illuſtrious infant to her fragrant breaſt."
- 8 squeeze or press together wordnet
- 9 To reduce to a particular shape or form by pressure, especially flatten or smooth. transitive
"to press cloth with a clothes-iron"
- 10 place between two surfaces and apply weight or pressure wordnet
- 11 To flatten a selected area of fabric using an iron with an up-and-down, not sliding, motion, so as to avoid disturbing adjacent areas. transitive
- 12 press and smooth with a heated iron wordnet
- 13 To drive or thrust by pressure, to force in a certain direction. transitive
"to press a crowd back"
- 14 exert pressure or force to or upon wordnet
- 15 To weigh upon, oppress, trouble. obsolete, transitive
"He turns from us; / Alas, he weeps too! Something presses him / He would reveal, but dare not. Sir, be comforted."
- 16 make strenuous pushing movements during birth to expel the baby wordnet
- 17 To force to a certain end or result; to urge strongly. transitive
"The two gentlemen who conducted me to the island were pressed by their private affairs to return in three days."
- 18 press from a plastic wordnet
- 19 To try to force (something upon someone).
"to press the Bible on an audience"
- 20 create by pressing wordnet
- 21 To hasten, urge onward. transitive
"to press a horse in a race"
- 22 crowd closely wordnet
- 23 To urge, beseech, entreat. transitive
"God heard their prayers, wherein they earnestly pressed him for the honor of his great name."
- 24 exert oneself continuously, vigorously, or obtrusively to gain an end or engage in a crusade for a certain cause or person; be an advocate for wordnet
- 25 To lay stress upon. transitive
"If we read but a very little, we naturally want to press it all; if we read a great deal, we are willing not to press the whole of what we read, and we learn what ought to be pressed and what not."
- 26 to be oppressive or burdensome wordnet
- 27 To throng, crowd. ambitransitive
- 28 be urgent wordnet
- 29 To print. obsolete, transitive
- 30 To force into service, particularly into naval service.
"The peaceful peasant to the wars is press'd."
Proper Noun
- 1 A surname.
Example
"Don't press your opinions on me."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "press"?
Common synonyms include: accelerate, accosting, adjure, adpressed, advice, adviser.
How do you use "press" in a sentence?
Don't press your opinions on me.
Etymology
Etymology 1
From Middle English presse (“throng, crowd, clothespress”), partially from Old English press (“clothespress”) (from Medieval Latin pressa) and from Old French presse (Modern French presse) from Old French presser (“to press”), from Latin pressāre, from pressus, past participle of premere (“to press”). Displaced native Middle English thring (“press, crowd, throng”) (from Old English þring (“a press, crowd, anything that presses or confines”)).
Etymology 2
From Middle English pressen (“to crowd, thring, press”), from Old French presser (“to press”) (Modern French presser) from Latin pressāre, from pressus, past participle of premere "to press". Displaced native Middle English thringen (“to press, crowd, throng”) (from Old English þringan (“to press, crowd”)), Middle English thrasten (“to press, force, urge”) (from Old English þrǣstan (“to press, force”)), Old English þryscan (“to press”), Old English þȳwan (“to press, impress”).