depress

verb

USdi-PRES/dɪˈpɹɛs/

5 meanings of depress

1
verbtransitive
To make someone feel sad, low, or without energy.
Like a heavy gray cloud that makes the whole day feel slow and sad.
Long, dark winters can depress people who love the sun.
The bad news depressed everyone in the office.
Similarsadden, dishearten, dispirit, grieve, upset
Oppositecheer, hearten, encourage, uplift
Note
2
verbtransitive
To push something down with force or pressure.
Like pushing a key on a keyboard down with your finger.
Depress the brake pedal slowly to stop the car.
She depressed the button to start the machine.
Similarsquash
Oppositerelease, raise, lift
Note
3
verbtransitive
To make part of the economy weaker, with less buying and selling.
Like letting the air out of a balloon, so the economy gets smaller and slower.
High interest rates can depress the housing market.
The new tariffs depressed local trade for months.
Similarreduce, dampen, lower, weaken, suppress
Oppositeboost, stimulate, raise, increase
Note
4
verbtransitive
To make someone feel less proud or important, and bring them low.
Defeat after defeat began to depress his pride.
The teacher's calm reply was meant to depress the bully's pride in front of the class.
Similarhumiliate
Oppositeinflate, boost, exalt
5
verbtransitive
To rewrite an equation so it uses smaller powers, making it easier to solve.
Like removing one step from a tall ladder so it becomes shorter and easier to climb.
You can depress the equation by taking out one known answer.
She depressed the equation until it was simple enough to solve.
Similarreduce
Note

Practice

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Origin

From Latin dēprimō, meaning "to press down," made from dē- ("down") plus premō ("to press"). It came into English through Old French.