Adjacent Words

Pressure definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

PRESS'URE, n. [L. pressura.] The act of pressing or urging with force.
1. The act of squeezing or crushing. Wine is obtained by the pressure of grapes.
2. The state of being squeezed or crushed.
3. The force of one body acting on another by weight or the continued application of power. Pressure is occasioned by weight or gravity, by the motion of bodies, by the expansion of fluids, by elasticity, etc. Mutual pressure may be caused by the meeting of moving bodies, or by the motion of one body against another at rest, and the resistance or elastic force of the latter. The degree of pressure is in proportion to the weight of the pressing body, or to the power applied, or to the elastic force of resisting bodies. The screw is a most powerful instrument of pressure. The pressure of wind on the sails of a ship is in proportion to its velocity.
4. A constraining force or impulse; that which urges or compels the intellectual or moral faculties; as the pressure of motives on the mind, or of fear on the conscience.
5. That which afflicts the body or depresses the spirits; any severe affliction, distress, calamity or grievance; straits, difficulties, embarrassments, or the distress they occasion. We speak of the pressure of poverty or want, the pressure of debts, the pressure of taxes, the pressure of afflictions or sorrow.
My own and my people's pressures are grievous.
To this consideration he retreats with comfort in all his pressures.
We observe that pressure is used both for trouble or calamity, and for the distress it produces.
6. Urgency; as the pressure of business.
7. Impression; stamp; character impressed.
All laws of books, all forms, all pressures past.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: the force applied to a unit area of surface; measured in pascals (SI unit) or in dynes (cgs unit); "the compressed gas exerts an increased pressure" [syn: pressure, pressure level, force per unit area]
2: a force that compels; "the public brought pressure to bear on the government"
3: the act of pressing; the exertion of pressure; "he gave the button a press"; "he used pressure to stop the bleeding"; "at the pressing of a button" [syn: press, pressure, pressing]
4: the state of demanding notice or attention; "the insistence of their hunger"; "the press of business matters" [syn: imperativeness, insistence, insistency, press, pressure]
5: the somatic sensation that results from applying force to an area of skin; "the sensitivity of his skin to pressure and temperature was normal" [syn: pressure, pressure sensation]
6: an oppressive condition of physical or mental or social or economic distress
7: the pressure exerted by the atmosphere [syn: atmospheric pressure, air pressure, pressure] v
1: to cause to do through pressure or necessity, by physical, moral or intellectual means :"She forced him to take a job in the city"; "He squeezed her for information" [syn: coerce, hale, squeeze, pressure, force]
2: exert pressure on someone through threats [syn: blackmail, blackjack, pressure]

Merriam Webster's

I. noun Etymology: Middle English, from Anglo-French, from Late Latin pressura, from Latin, action of pressing, pressure, from pressus, past participle of premere Date: 14th century 1. a. the burden of physical or mental distress b. the constraint of circumstance ; the weight of social or economic imposition 2. the application of force to something by something else in direct contact with it ; compression 3. archaic impression, stamp 4. a. the action of a force against an opposing force b. the force or thrust exerted over a surface divided by its area c. electromotive force 5. the stress or urgency of matters demanding attention ; exigency <people who work well under pressure> 6. the force of selection that results from one or more agents and tends to reduce a population of organisms <population pressure> <predation pressure> 7. atmospheric pressure 8. a sensation aroused by moderate compression of a body part or surface • pressureless adjective II. transitive verb (pressured; pressuring) Date: 1938 1. to apply pressure to 2. pressurize 3. to cook in a pressure cooker

NOAA Weather Glossary

The force exerted by the interaction of the atmosphereand gravity. Also known as atmospheric pressure.

Oxford Reference Dictionary

n. & v. --n. 1 a the exertion of continuous force on or against a body by another in contact with it. b the force exerted. c the amount of this (expressed by the force on a unit area) (atmospheric pressure). 2 urgency; the need to meet a deadline etc. (work under pressure). 3 affliction or difficulty (under financial pressure). 4 constraining influence (if pressure is brought to bear). --v.tr. 1 apply (esp. moral) pressure to. 2 a coerce. b (often foll. by into) persuade (was pressured into attending). Phrases and idioms: pressure-cook cook in a pressure-cooker. pressure-cooker an airtight pan for cooking quickly under steam pressure. pressure gauge a gauge showing the pressure of steam etc. pressure group a group or association formed to promote a particular interest or cause by influencing public policy. pressure point 1 a point where an artery can be pressed against a bone to inhibit bleeding. 2 a point on the skin sensitive to pressure. 3 a target for political pressure or influence. pressure suit an inflatable suit for flying at a high altitude. Etymology: ME f. L pressura (as PRESS(1))

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Pressure Pres"sure, n. Electro-motive force.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Pressure Pres"sure (?; 138), n. [OF., fr. L. pressura, fr. premere. See 4th Press.] 1. The act of pressing, or the condition of being pressed; compression; a squeezing; a crushing; as, a pressure of the hand. 2. A contrasting force or impulse of any kind; as, the pressure of poverty; the pressure of taxes; the pressure of motives on the mind; the pressure of civilization. Where the pressure of danger was not felt. --Macaulay. 3. Affliction; distress; grievance. My people's pressures are grievous. --Eikon Basilike. In the midst of his great troubles and pressures. --Atterbury. 4. Urgency; as, the pressure of business. 5. Impression; stamp; character impressed. All saws of books, all forms, all pressures past. --Shak. 6. (Mech.) The action of a force against some obstacle or opposing force; a force in the nature of a thrust, distributed over a surface, often estimated with reference to the upon a unit's area. Atmospheric pressure, Center of pressure, etc. See under Atmospheric, Center, etc. Back pressure (Steam engine), pressure which resists the motion of the piston, as the pressure of exhaust steam which does not find free outlet. Fluid pressure, pressure like that exerted by a fluid. It is a thrust which is normal and equally intense in all directions around a point. --Rankine. Pressure gauge, a gauge for indicating fluid pressure; a manometer.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(pressures, pressuring, pressured) Frequency: The word is one of the 700 most common words in English. 1. Pressure is force that you produce when you press hard on something. She kicked at the door with her foot, and the pressure was enough to open it... The best way to treat such bleeding is to apply firm pressure. 2. The pressure in a place or container is the force produced by the quantity of gas or liquid in that place or container. The window in the cockpit had blown in and the pressure dropped dramatically... N-UNCOUNT: also N in pl 3. If there is pressure on a person, someone is trying to persuade or force them to do something. He may have put pressure on her to agree... Its government is under pressure from the European Commission... N-UNCOUNT: also N in pl 4. If you are experiencing pressure, you feel that you must do a lot of tasks or make a lot of decisions in very little time, or that people expect a lot from you. Can you work under pressure?... The pressures of modern life are great. N-UNCOUNT: also N in pl 5. If you pressure someone to do something, you try forcefully to persuade them to do it. He will never pressure you to get married... The Government should not be pressured into making hasty decisions... Don't pressure me... His boss did not pressure him for results. VERB: V n to-inf, be V-ed into -ing, V n, V n for n • pressured You're likely to feel anxious and pressured. ADJ: usu v-link ADJ 6. see also blood pressure

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

n. 1. Compressing, squeezing, crushing. 2. Influence, constraining force. 3. Urgency, press, hurry. 4. Affliction, grievance, calamity, distress, straits, oppression, difficulty, embarrassment. 5. Impression, stamp, character impressed.

Moby Thesaurus

abetment, adverse circumstances, adversity, advocate, affliction, aggravation, albatross, annoyance, apply pressure, argumentum baculinum, ascendancy, authority, bale, bear against, bear down on, bear down upon, bear hard upon, bearing, beset, besiege, blandish, blandishment, blight, boost, bug, bummer, bump, bunt, burden, burdening, burthen, butt, buttonhole, buttonholing, cajole, cajolement, cajolery, call on, call upon, care, caressing, cargo, case of need, charge, charging, charisma, charm, clamping, clamping down, clout, clutch, coax, coaxing, coerce, coercion, compel, compression, compulsion, consequence, constrain, constraint, constraints, control, credit, crisis, cross, crunch, crush, crushing, cumber, cumbrance, curse, deadweight, demand, demandingness, demands, difficulties, difficulty, dig, dire necessity, distress, dominance, domination, downer, drag, drive, dun, dunning, duress, effect, emergency, eminence, enchantment, encouragement, encumbrance, esteem, exert pressure, exhort, exigence, exigencies, exigency, favor, feeling, fingering, force, freight, friction, frottage, goading, good feeling, greatness, handicap, handling, hard knocks, hard life, hard lot, hardcase, hardship, head, high pressure, high-pressure, hold, hustle, immediacy, impel, imperative, imperativeness, importance, importunacy, importunateness, importune, importunity, impulse, impulsion, incidental power, incubus, incumbency, inducement, influence, influentiality, influentialness, insinuation, insist, insist on, insist upon, insistence, instance, intimidate, intimidation, irritation, jab, jawbone, jog, joggle, jolt, jostle, lading, leadership, lean on, leverage, load, loading, lobby, magnetism, make, manipulation, mastery, matter of necessity, mental strain, millstone, moment, nag, nag at, nagging, needling, nervous strain, nervous tension, nip, nudge, oppression, overload, overtaxing, overweighting, palpation, persistence, personality, persuade, persuasion, pertinaciousness, pertinacity, pester, pestering, petting, pinch, plague, plaguing, plead with, plight, ply, plying, poke, potency, power, precedence, predicament, predominance, preponderance, press, pressing, pressingness, prestige, prevail on, prevail upon, pricking, priority, problems, prod, prodding, prominence, punch, purchase, push, put pressure on, rank, rash impulse, recommend, reign, repute, require, rigor, rubbing, rule, rush, saddling, say, sea of troubles, seniority, shove, soft-soap, spurring, squeeze, squeezing, stature, strain, straits, strength, stress, stress and strain, stress of life, stroking, strong-arm tactics, suasion, subtle influence, suggestion, superincumbency, supremacy, surcharge, sway, sweet-talk, tautness, taxing, tease, teasing, tenseness, tension, the big stick, the bludgeon, the club, the jackboot, the mailed fist, the strong arm, the sword, thrust, tightening, torque, torsion, touching, trial, tribulation, trouble, troubles, tweak, upper hand, urge, urgency, urgent need, urging, vale of tears, vexation, vicissitude, violence, weight, weightiness, wheedle, wheedling, whip hand, work on