🇫🇷French Source WordCode: FR

détresse

Pronunciation / Transliteration: detres

🇬🇧 Direct English Meaning:
Distress/dɪˈstres/
nounverbCEFR B2 (Upper)Top #2850 frequency
Full Thesaurus
🇫🇷 Example Sentence in French:

"Les marins en détresse ont appelé les secours."

Comprehensive Definitions & Senses

2 senses
As noun
  1. 1

    Extreme anxiety, sorrow, or pain.

    "The sudden loss of her job caused her immense emotional distress."
  2. 2

    A state of danger or desperate need, typically requiring immediate assistance.

    "The ship sent out an emergency radio signal while in distress."

Thesaurus & Semantic Spectrum

Antonyms & Contrasting Words (1)

Linguistic Origin & Historical Etymology

Derived from the Old French destrece, meaning 'narrowness' or 'oppression', which itself stems from the Late Latin districtiare, meaning 'to draw tight' or 'to compel'. Historically evolving from physical constraint and hardship, the term broadened by the late Middle English period to encompass severe mental suffering, anguish, and physical peril.

Quick Vocabulary Retention Check

Which of the following is the closest synonym for "Distress"?

Thesaurus & Synonyms Graph

Explore Nuanced Synonyms for "Distress"

Discover exact matches, context-specific alternatives, and antonyms with intensity ratings in the VocabDictionary Thesaurus.

View "Distress" Synonym Map