bear down

verb

bore down; borne down also born down; bearing down; bears down

transitive verb

: overcome, overwhelm

intransitive verb

: to exert full strength and concentrated attention

Phrases

bear down on

1

: emphasize

2

: to weigh heavily on : burden

Synonyms

• depress
• press
• shove
• weigh (on or upon)

Examples of bear down in a Sentence

you need to bear down on that cap a bit to get it to latch tightly

Recent Examples on the Web

What these past fires presented was a rare chance to respond in new ways to the pressures bearing down on the cities — from population growth, or rising rents, or the evolving demands of a new century. —Emily Badger, New York Times, 24 Jan. 2025

Allen took a few running steps and saw two 49ers defenders bearing down on him. —Joe Buscaglia, The Athletic, 23 Jan. 2025

On the decisive sequence, Cates barely won a race to the puck at the red line, chipped it in the air, batted it forward with his glove and then lifted a backhander past Bobrovsky with two Panthers bearing down on him from behind. —Miami Herald, 14 Jan. 2025

With the Eaton fire bearing down on an Altadena home, a brother and sister had to decide what to do. —Hunter Clauss, Los Angeles Times, 11 Jan. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense

Kids Definition

bear down

verb

1

: overwhelm, overcome

2

: to press or weigh down

3

: to make an all-out effort

4

: to weigh heavily on : burden

Medical Definition

bear down

intransitive verb

(ˈ)ba(ə)r-ˈdau̇n, (ˈ)be(ə)r- 

: to contract the abdominal muscles and the diaphragm during childbirth