press

1 of 4

noun (1)

1
a
: a crowd or crowded condition : throng
b
: a thronging or crowding forward or together
2
a
: an apparatus or machine by which a substance is cut or shaped, an impression of a body is taken, a material is compressed, pressure is applied to a body, liquid is expressed, or a cutting tool is fed into the work by pressure
b
: a building containing presses or a business using presses
3
4
a
: an action of pressing or pushing : pressure
b
: an aggressive pressuring defense employed in basketball often over the entire court area
5
: the properly smoothed and creased condition of a freshly pressed garment
out of press
6
b
: the act or the process of printing
c
: a printing or publishing establishment
7
a
: the gathering and publishing or broadcasting of news : journalism
b
: newspapers, periodicals, and often radio and television news broadcasting
c
: news reporters, publishers, and broadcasters
d
: comment or notice in newspapers and periodicals
is getting a good press
8
: any of various pressure devices (such as one for keeping sporting gear from warping when not in use)
9
: a lift in weight lifting in which the weight is raised to shoulder height and then smoothly extended overhead without assist from the legs compare clean and jerk, snatch

press

2 of 4

verb (1)

pressed; pressing; presses

transitive verb

1
: to act upon through steady pushing or thrusting force exerted in contact : squeeze
2
3
a
: to squeeze out the juice or contents of
b
: to squeeze with apparatus or instruments to a desired density, smoothness, or shape
press [=iron] a shirt
… the drained curds are generally pressed together into solid blocks of cheese.Caroline Campion
4
a
: to exert influence on : constrain
b
: to try hard to persuade : beseech, entreat
5
: to move by means of pressure
6
a
: to lay stress or emphasis on
b
: to insist on or request urgently
7
: to follow through (a course of action)
8
: to clasp in affection or courtesy
9
: to make (a phonograph record) from a matrix (see matrix sense 2d)
also : to make (another kind of disk, such as a CD) by a similar process

intransitive verb

1
: to crowd closely : mass
2
: to force or push one's way
3
: to seek urgently : contend
4
: to require haste or speed in action
5
: to exert pressure
6
: to take or hold a press
7
: to employ a press in basketball

press

3 of 4

verb (2)

pressed; pressing; presses

transitive verb

1
: to force into service especially in an army or navy : impress
2
a
: to take by authority especially for public use : commandeer
b
: to take and force into any usually emergency service

intransitive verb

: to impress men as soldiers or sailors

press

4 of 4

noun (2)

1
: impressment into service especially in a navy
2
obsolete : a warrant for impressing recruits
Phrases
press the flesh
: to greet and shake hands with people especially while campaigning for political office

Examples of press in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
And with great power comes great scrutiny – not least at the hands of the tabloid press. Amanda Davies, CNN, 21 Mar. 2024 Throughout the 1920s, the national press closely followed Boll’s escapades. Shoshi Parks, Smithsonian Magazine, 21 Mar. 2024 The handiwork of famous designer Bruno Putzeys, Mola Mola’s take-no-prisoners approach to sound has earned the company accolades in the audio press. Robert Ross, Robb Report, 20 Mar. 2024 Despite the decades of bad press and costly litigation that ensued, pyramid schemes—or, to be precise, the ostensibly law-abiding companies that happen to be dead ringers for pyramid schemes—appear to be an immovable pillar of the American economy. Jessica Winter, The New Yorker, 20 Mar. 2024 The scrappier corners of the avant-garde are no longer off limits to the mainstream press. Charles McNulty, Los Angeles Times, 19 Mar. 2024 While the Duke and Duchess of Sussex have received criticism in the U.K. press (such as around the launch of the sleek new sussex.com website), Meghan is focused on looking forward. Janine Henni, Peoplemag, 18 Mar. 2024 But naturally, the item garnered a tremendous amount of press. Meredith Woerner, Variety, 14 Mar. 2024 This decision came after years of the British press making racist jabs at Markle, and amid stories of a growing feud between the brothers (and possibly their wives). Elizabeth Logan, Glamour, 14 Mar. 2024
Verb
In this series, in partnership with the Rolex Perpetual Planet initiative, WIRED highlights individuals and communities working to solve some of our most pressing environmental challenges. Sabrina Weiss, WIRED, 20 Mar. 2024 The wide, rounded end can be pressed over your face and other parts of your body and can be used as a general massage tool, whereas others are designed to target specific areas of the face. Isabella Ubaldi, Health, 20 Mar. 2024 In the Donbas, a region of rolling hills dotted with coal mines and factories, Russia has been pressing along four lines of attack, seeking to exploit openings created by capturing Avdiivka. Maria Varenikova, New York Times, 20 Mar. 2024 On May 25, 2020, George Floyd, a 46-year-old Black man, died after being pinned to the ground by police officers in Minneapolis, one of whom pressed his knee on Floyd's neck as horrified bystanders watched and recorded while Floyd struggled to breathe. Daniel Gonzalez, The Arizona Republic, 19 Mar. 2024 Lemon pressed Musk on his comments, noting that the pilot on the Alaska Airlines flight that saw a high-profile door plug blowout in January was a woman who landed the malfunctioning plane safely — and that Boeing has taken responsibility for the incident. William Gavin, Quartz, 18 Mar. 2024 Best for: Thick or coarse hair How to Use: Apply either scalp scrub, shampoo, or oil, then gently press the rubber tips to the scalp and massage, repeating all around the scalp. Deanna Pai, Vogue, 18 Mar. 2024 Schumer and other members of Congress — including Reps. Ami Bera (D-Calif.) and Larry Bucshon (R-Ind.), who are physicians — had pressed federal health officials to make more aid available to doctor groups. Dan Diamond, Washington Post, 9 Mar. 2024 The moment occurred Thursday night during an exchange in which Biden pressed Republicans in his address to pass a bipartisan border security deal that fell apart after Trump opposed it. CBS News, 9 Mar. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'press.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Noun (1)

Middle English presse, from Anglo-French, from presser to press

Verb (1)

Middle English, from Anglo-French presser, from Latin pressare, frequentative of premere to press; probably akin to Russian naperet' to press

Verb (2)

alteration of obsolete prest to enlist by giving pay in advance

First Known Use

Noun (1)

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Verb (1)

14th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Verb (2)

1578, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Noun (2)

1599, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of press was in the 13th century

Dictionary Entries Near press

Cite this Entry

“Press.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/press. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

press

1 of 3 noun
1
2
: a machine or device that uses pressure to shape, flatten, squeeze, or stamp
a cookie press
a cider press
3
4
a
: an act of pressing : pressure
b
: an aggressive defense in basketball
5
: the smoothed and creased condition of a freshly pressed garment
6
b
: a printing or publishing business
7
a
: the gathering and publishing or broadcasting of news
b
: the newspapers and magazines of a country
c
: news reporters and broadcasters

press

2 of 3 verb
1
: to bear down upon : push steadily against
2
: to squeeze so as to force out the juice or contents of
press apples to make cider
3
: to flatten out or smooth by bearing down upon (as with an iron)
press clothes
4
a
: to put pressure on : force, compel
pressed by business to return
b
: to ask or urge strongly
pressed us to go with them
5
a
: to insist on
didn't press the issue
b
: to make a demand
pressing for higher wages
6
a
: to crowd closely
reporters pressed around the celebrity
b
: to force or push one's way
pressed deeper into the jungle
presser noun

press

3 of 3 verb
: to force into emergency service

More from Merriam-Webster on press

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