bear down
verb
bore down; borne down also born down; bearing down; bears down
: to exert full strength and concentrated attention
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
Almost as soon as Hurricane Milton bore down on South Florida last month, high winds began shredding the roof of Tropicana Field, home for 26 years to the Tampa Bay Rays baseball team.
—
Ellen Cushing, The Atlantic, 2 Nov. 2024
With pressure bearing down, Moss tried to force a pass to Zachariah Branch, only to watch Maryland’s Lavain Scruggs step in front, running 51 yards with an interception before he was caught.
—Ryan Kartje, Los Angeles Times, 22 Oct. 2024
But as Milton bore down on Siesta Key, Twin City was still recovering from Hurricane Helene, which made landfall in the Florida Panhandle on Sept. 26 and wrecked much of the mobile home park.
—Matt Lavietes, NBC News, 12 Oct. 2024
Extreme weather requires resiliency As Hurricane Helene bore down on the southeast last Friday, Sinclaire Houston was among the thousands of students not physically in school.
—Jackie Valley, The Christian Science Monitor, 4 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for bear down 
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Ellen Cushing, The Atlantic, 2 Nov. 2024
With pressure bearing down, Moss tried to force a pass to Zachariah Branch, only to watch Maryland’s Lavain Scruggs step in front, running 51 yards with an interception before he was caught.
—Ryan Kartje, Los Angeles Times, 22 Oct. 2024
But as Milton bore down on Siesta Key, Twin City was still recovering from Hurricane Helene, which made landfall in the Florida Panhandle on Sept. 26 and wrecked much of the mobile home park.
—Matt Lavietes, NBC News, 12 Oct. 2024
Extreme weather requires resiliency As Hurricane Helene bore down on the southeast last Friday, Sinclaire Houston was among the thousands of students not physically in school.
—Jackie Valley, The Christian Science Monitor, 4 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for bear down
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Cite this Entry
“Bear down.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/bear%20down. Accessed 14 Nov. 2024.
Copy CitationMedical Definition
bear down
intransitive verb
: to contract the abdominal muscles and the diaphragm during childbirth
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