compress
Americanverb (used with object)
-
compresses,
present (3rd person singular)
-
compressed,
past participle, past
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compressing
present participle
-
to press together; force into less space.
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to cause to become a solid mass.
to compress cotton into bales.
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to condense, shorten, or abbreviate.
The book was compressed by 50 pages.
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Computers. to reduce the storage space required for (data) by changing its format.
The algorithm should compress the video file without losing any quality.
noun
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compresses
plural
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Medicine/Medical. a soft, cloth pad held in place by a bandage and used to provide pressure or to supply moisture, cold, heat, or medication.
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an apparatus for compressing cotton bales.
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a warehouse for storing cotton bales before shipment.
verb
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(tr) to squeeze together or compact into less space; condense
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computing to apply a compression program to (electronic data) so that it takes up less space
noun
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a wet or dry cloth or gauze pad with or without medication, applied firmly to some part of the body to relieve discomfort, reduce fever, drain a wound, etc
-
a machine for packing material, esp cotton, under pressure
Synonym Usage
See contract.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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compressiblenessnoun
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overcompressverb (used with object)
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precompressverb (used with object)
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compressibleadjective
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noncompressibleadjective
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uncompressibleadjective
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compressiblyadverb
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compressinglyadverb
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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compresssimple
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compressessimple
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have compressedperfect
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has compressedperfect
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am compressingprogressive
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are compressingprogressive
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is compressingprogressive
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have been compressingperfect progressive
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has been compressingperfect progressive
Past
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compressedsimple
-
had compressedperfect
-
was compressingprogressive
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were compressingprogressive
-
had been compressingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of compress
1350–1400; (v.) Middle English (< Middle French compresser ) < Late Latin compressāre, frequentative of Latin comprimere to squeeze together ( see com-, press 1); (noun) < Middle French compresse, noun derivative of the v.
Explanation
The noun compress refers to a pad that's held to your body to reduce pain or symptoms of illness. A washcloth dipped in cold water and pressed onto your forehead to help you cool down is a type of compress. As a verb, compress means to squeeze together with a fair amount of pressure. When you compress a sponge to get all the water out, you press it between your palms or squish it between your fingers. Compress can also mean to make something more compact — as with the sponge, when you compress an object it gets smaller. You could even compress a speech by cutting it down into a shorter but equally effective version.
Vocabulary lists containing compress
100 Great Words from "Fahrenheit 451" -- Part I Vocabulary
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Vocabulary Video Contest (2013) - List 1
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The Thing About Jellyfish
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
A key benefit of the design is that it does not require energy to compress air before combustion begins.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 4, 2026
They also installed advanced sensors that can detect movement up to one-billionth of a meter by using fiber optic cables that can extend or compress if any ground deformation occurs.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 14, 2026
Eventually, all these materials wind up at one of four baling machines that compress them into giant blocks, which then get moved around the facility’s storage area by crew-operated forklifts.
From Barron's ● Jun. 17, 2026
Entry-level workers, on the other hand, may benefit: AI can compress the learning curve, allowing less-experienced people to perform at higher levels sooner.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 10, 2026
Once the fighting had ended and the master had been served his meal, I took a cool compress and mug of cold ale up to Madam.
From "Chains" by Laurie Halse Anderson
High pressure causes colder air to sink in the atmosphere, where it compresses, warms up and dries out.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 20, 2026
"Tessera compresses loads of that data and gives us really easy-to-use maps of the UK, where we can ask really specific questions about things we can see from space."
From BBC ● May 18, 2026
"J1007+3540 is one of the clearest and most spectacular examples of episodic AGN with jet-cluster interaction, where the surrounding hot gas bends, compresses, and distorts the jets," Dr. Pal explained.
From Science Daily ● Apr. 13, 2026
TurboQuant compresses that memory by a factor of six.
From MarketWatch ● Apr. 6, 2026
Neighbors suggested their own remedies: arnica compresses, packed mud from a holy well, ground elephant tusk from the Niger to mix in her daily broth.
From "Dreaming in Cuban" by Cristina García
“A shorter timeline would be artificially compressed and risks depriving this Court of a full record on which to decide this $110 billion case.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 31, 2026
It becomes a little compressed, a little messier and somehow more itself.
From Salon ● Jul. 30, 2026
Rising rates and this depressed investor sentiment have compressed the price-to-book ratio to 1.7 times.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 22, 2026
The team found that the tin telluride film is compressed by the underlying substrate, creating strain that is essential for stabilizing the material's topological state.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 11, 2026
It was not silent either, but compressed under my foot with a squeaky crunch.
From "The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate" by Jacqueline Kelly
While the force between individual atoms is weak, it becomes remarkably strong across the large surface area of two dimensional materials, pulling the sheets together and compressing the water trapped between them.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 2, 2026
“Higher costs are eroding household purchasing power and compressing business margins, while heightened uncertainty is dampening business confidence and investment,” the UN said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 19, 2026
The drop is compressing the core of bitcoin’s business model: Mining, an energy-intensive process, only works when prices stay above costs.
From MarketWatch ● Apr. 9, 2026
The S&P 500 is 9.4% below its late January peak, with its price-to-earnings ratio compressing by 17%.
From Barron's ● Mar. 30, 2026
I cupped my palms around it, compressing the ice into a compact ball.
From "Keep It Together, Keiko Carter" by Debbi Michiko Florence
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
