verb
Meaning 1
To press down.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Examples
- Depress the upper lever to start the machine.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: downbear, squash
Antonyms: none provided
Standard Lemma guide
depress
Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.
Sound
Pronunciation
Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.
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/dɪˈpɹɛs/
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Southern-England: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
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rhymes with -ɛs
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CMU ARPABET: D IH0 P R EH1 S Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.
verb
Meaning 2
To make depressed, sad or bored.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Examples
- Winter depresses me.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: deject, get down, aggrieve, attrist, begloom, begrieve, besorrow, grieve, pain, bring down, come down on, contristate, darken, dash, depress, desolate, dispirit, engrieve, forset, grieven, moan, oppress, repent, rue, sadden, sadden up, tristitiate, ungladden, unhappy, upset
Antonyms: cheer up
verb
Meaning 3
To cause a depression or a decrease in parts of the economy.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Topics: economics, sciences
Examples
- Lower productivity will eventually depress wages.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
verb
Meaning 4
To bring down or humble; to abase (pride, etc.).
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: cut down to size, humiliate, put someone in their place, abase, bring down to size, debase, defame, degrade, demean, demote, depress, discredit, disgrace, dishonour, disparage, downgrade, embase, give a bad name, humble, knock down to size, reduce, relegate, sink, slur, trim down to size, whittle down to size
Antonyms: none provided
verb
Meaning 5
To reduce (an equation) in a lower degree.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Topics: mathematics, sciences
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
verb
Meaning 6
lessen the activity or force of
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
Examples
- The rising inflation depressed the economy
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: weaken
verb
Meaning 7
press down
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
Examples
- Depress the space key
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: press down
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: move, displace
verb
Meaning 8
cause to drop or sink
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
Examples
- The lack of rain had depressed the water level in the reservoir
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: lower
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: change, alter, modify
verb
Meaning 9
lower someone's spirits; make downhearted
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
Examples
- These news depressed her
- The bad state of her child's health demoralizes her
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: deject, cast down, get down, dismay, dispirit, demoralize, demoralise
Antonyms: elate
Broader terms: discourage
Narrower terms: chill
verb
Meaning 10
lower (prices or markets)
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
Examples
- The glut of oil depressed gas prices
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: lower, take down, let down, get down, bring down
History
Etymology
From Middle English depressen, from Old French depresser, from Latin dēpressus, perfect participle of dēprimō (“to press down, to weigh down”), from dē- (“off, away, down, out”) + premō (“to press”).
Across languages
Translations
27 source translations are retained for this English entry.
- Bulgarian: натискам (natiskam) — to press down on
- Finnish: painaa alas — to press down on
- French: appuyer — to press down on
- Hebrew: לחץ (lakhátz) — to press down on
- Ido: depresar — to press down on
- Portuguese: pressionar — to press down on
- Slovak: stlačiť — to press down on
- Bulgarian: гнетя (gnetja) — to make depressed, sad or bored
- Bulgarian: потискам (potiskam) — to make depressed, sad or bored
- Catalan: deprimir — to make depressed, sad or bored
- Czech: deprimovat — to make depressed, sad or bored
- Dutch: deprimeren — to make depressed, sad or bored
- Finnish: masentaa — to make depressed, sad or bored
- Finnish: ahdistaa — to make depressed, sad or bored
- German: deprimieren — to make depressed, sad or bored
- Hebrew: דיכא (diké') — to make depressed, sad or bored
- Ido: depresar — to make depressed, sad or bored
- Japanese: 凹ます (hekomasu) — to make depressed, sad or bored
- Japanese: 凹ませる (hekomaseru) — to make depressed, sad or bored
- Māori: rāwakiwaki — to make depressed, sad or bored
- Māori: whakapōuri — to make depressed, sad or bored
- Portuguese: deprimir — to make depressed, sad or bored
- Slovak: deprimovať — to make depressed, sad or bored
- Spanish: deprimir — to make depressed, sad or bored
- Finnish: laskea — to cause a depression or a decrease in parts of the economy
- Finnish: alentaa — to cause a depression or a decrease in parts of the economy
- Ido: depresar — to cause a depression or a decrease in parts of the economy