BORE (DOWN ON) Synonyms: 65 Similar and Opposite Words

bore (down on) 1 of 2

verb

Definition of bore (down on)

past tense of bear (down on)

as in weighed (on or upon)

to push steadily against with some force you need to bear down on that cap a bit to get it to latch tightly

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bore down on

2 of 2

phrase

past tense of bear down on

as in highlighted

to indicate the importance of by centering attention on Our manager bore down on the need to meet upcoming deadlines.

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Recent Examples of Synonyms for bore (down on)

Verb

Foreign policy emerged as another major point of contention, particularly when moderator Rick Albin repeatedly pressed el Sayed to say whether Israel or Iran posed the greater threat to the United States.

— Barnini Chakraborty, The Washington Examiner, 9 Oct. 2026
Lopez’s mother, Allison Lyman, and other family members had pressed state lawmakers to change California’s vehicular manslaughter law to prohibit diversion in such cases.

— Darrell Smith, Sacbee.com, 8 Oct. 2026

Definition of pressed

Verb

As Lindstrom’s voice echoed throughout his teammates’ helmets, safety Jessie Bates III shoved him once, then again, and again.

— Daniel Flick, AJC.com, 25 Sep. 2026
Like every fashion trend, barn jackets have enjoyed their time in the limelight, occasionally taking a back seat when trendier options like scarf coats and cropped puffers shoved them offstage.

— Irene Richardson, InStyle, 24 Sep. 2026

Definition of shoved

Verb

The biggest drag on the index was independent power producers (like Constellation, NRG, and Vistra), whose earnings multiples have compressed anywhere from 2 to 8 turns from their recent peaks.

— Michael Khouw, CNBC, 2 Oct. 2026
In another, an agent apparently compressed data into a roughly 35 KB file and uploaded it through ntfy, but investigators could not recover the file to determine its contents.

— Neetika Walter, Interesting Engineering, 1 Oct. 2026

Definition of compressed

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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bore (down)

bore (down on)

bore down on

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“Bore (down on).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bore%20%28down%20on%29. Accessed 9 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of bore (down on)

verb

phrase

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