What's the difference between
and
Enter two words to compare and contrast their definitions, origins, and synonyms to better understand how those words are related.

Dread vs Stress - What's the difference?

dread | stress |

As verbs the difference between dread and stress

is that dread is to fear greatly while stress is to apply force to (a body or structure) causing strain.

As nouns the difference between dread and stress

is that dread is great fear in view of impending evil; fearful apprehension of danger; anticipatory terror while stress is the internal distribution of force per unit area (pressure) within a body reacting to applied forces which causes strain or deformation and is typically symbolised by σ.

As an adjective dread

is terrible; greatly feared.

dread

English

Verb

(en verb)
  • To fear greatly.
  • To anticipate with fear.
  • I'm dreading getting the results of the test, as it could decide my whole life.
  • * 1877 , (Anna Sewell), (Black Beauty) Chapter 22[http://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Black_Beauty/22]
  • Day by day, hole by hole our bearing reins were shortened, and instead of looking forward with pleasure to having my harness put on as I used to do, I began to dread it.
  • To be in dread, or great fear.
  • * Bible, Deuteronomy i. 29
  • Dread not, neither be afraid of them.

    Derived terms

    * dreadable * dreadworthy

    Noun

    (en noun)
  • Great fear in view of impending evil; fearful apprehension of danger; anticipatory terror.
  • * Tillotson
  • the secret dread of divine displeasure
  • * Shakespeare
  • the dread of something after death
  • * '>citation
  • Reverential or respectful fear; awe.
  • * Bible, Genesis ix 2.
  • The fear of you, and the dread of you, shall be upon every beast of the earth.
  • * Shakespeare
  • His sceptre shows the force of temporal power, / The attribute to awe and majesty, / Wherein doth sit the dread and fear of kings.
  • Somebody or something dreaded.
  • (obsolete) A person highly revered.
  • * Spenser
  • Una, his dear dread
  • (obsolete) Fury; dreadfulness.
  • (Spenser)
  • A Rastafarian.
  • (chiefly, in the plural) dreadlock
  • Adjective

    (er)
  • Terrible; greatly feared.
  • (archaic) Awe-inspiring; held in fearful awe.
  • *
  • See also

    * dreadlocks * dreadnought

    Anagrams

    * * *

    stress

    English

    Noun

  • (countable, physics) The internal distribution of force per unit area (pressure) within a body reacting to applied forces which causes strain or deformation and is typically symbolised by
  • (countable, physics) externally applied to a body which cause internal stress within the body.
  • (uncountable) Emotional pressure suffered by a human being or other animal.
  • Go easy on him, he's been under a lot of stress lately.
  • (uncountable, phonetics) The emphasis placed on a syllable of a word.
  • Some people put the stress on the first syllable of “controversy”; others put it on the second.
  • (uncountable) Emphasis placed on words in speaking.
  • (uncountable) Emphasis placed on a particular point in an argument or discussion (whether spoken or written).
  • (Spenser)
  • (Scotland, legal) distress; the act of distraining; also, the thing distrained.
  • Synonyms

    * (phonetics) accent, emphasis * (on words in speaking) emphasis * (on a point) emphasis

    Verb

  • To apply force to (a body or structure) causing strain.
  • To apply emotional pressure to (a person or animal).
  • (informal) To suffer stress; to worry or be agitated.
  • To emphasise (a syllable of a word).
  • “Emphasis” is stressed on the first syllable, but “emphatic” is stressed on the second.
  • To emphasise (words in speaking).
  • To emphasise (a point) in an argument or discussion.
  • I must stress that this information is given in strict confidence.

    Synonyms

    * (phonetics) emphasise/emphasize * (on words in speaking) emphasise/emphasize * (on a point) emphasise/emphasize, underline

    Derived terms

    * stressed * stress out

    References