depress
Americanverb (used with object)
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depresses,
present (3rd person singular)
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depressed,
past participle, past
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depressing
present participle
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to make sad or gloomy; lower in spirits; deject; dispirit.
- Synonyms:
- sadden, discourage, dishearten
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to lower in force, vigor, activity, etc.; weaken; make dull.
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to lower in amount or value.
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to put into a lower position.
to depress the muzzle of a gun.
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to press down.
-
Music. to lower in pitch.
verb
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to lower in spirits; make gloomy; deject
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to weaken or lower the force, vigour, or energy of
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to lower prices of (securities or a security market)
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to press or push down
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to lower the pitch of (a musical sound)
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obsolete to suppress or subjugate
Synonym Usage
See oppress.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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depressibilitynoun
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overdepressverb (used with object)
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depressibleadjective
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undepressibleadjective
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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depresssimple
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depressessimple
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have depressedperfect
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has depressedperfect
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am depressingprogressive
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are depressingprogressive
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is depressingprogressive
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have been depressingperfect progressive
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has been depressingperfect progressive
Past
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depressedsimple
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had depressedperfect
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was depressingprogressive
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were depressingprogressive
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had been depressingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of depress
First recorded in 1275–1325; Middle English depressen, from Anglo-French, Old French depresser, from Latin dēpressus “pressed down” (past participle of dēprimere, equivalent to de- de- + -primere, combining form of premere “to press”); see pressure
Explanation
Depress means to lessen the activity or power of something. If you want to depress the spread of poverty, you need to find ways to slow it down, like by bringing education and skill-building resources into the poorest communities. The word depress comes from the Old French word depresser, meaning "put down by force." Depress can be used literally to describe something you push down, like when you depress the handle on a toaster to lower the bread. It can also describe a more figurative lowering, such as the lowering of a person's emotional state. Attending a funeral is likely to depress you, and watching a sad movie afterwards will just sink your spirits even more.
Vocabulary lists containing depress
Hatchet
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The SAT: Multiple-Meaning Words, List 4
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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 sharp drop in gas prices in the first half of the month will depress the headline increase in the CPI.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 11, 2026
Variety and Rolling Stone owner Penske Media sued Google in September on antitrust grounds, alleging that its AI summaries illegally use the publisher’s reporting and depress online traffic.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 22, 2026
The effect of these higher yields has been to depress sentiment – and valuations — among U.S. homebuilders.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 22, 2026
“These additional allowances would not only endanger our emissions targets, they would also flood the auction market and depress cap-and-invest revenues,” said Pam Odell of the group Climate Action California.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 30, 2026
Listen to the engine, depress the clutch, shift, gas, release, steer, check your mirrors, signal your turn, look twice for motorcycles.
From "Eleanor & Park" by Rainbow Rowell
In the macro economy, uncertainty depresses economic activity, increases stock market volatility and reduces returns.
From MarketWatch ● Mar. 27, 2026
“It is the duration of a shock, not its magnitude, that structurally depresses valuations,” he says.
From Barron's ● Jan. 16, 2026
Jonny's prediction: It depresses me how good Sunderland are this season.
From BBC ● Dec. 24, 2025
More broadly, pumping more oil depresses prices, creating fiscal headaches.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 4, 2025
Next is a man named Gonzalo, who is wearing blue work pants and a Bugs Bunny T-shirt that’s probably from the nineties, which depresses me like few things can.
From "I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter" by Erika L. Sánchez
She said she remembered feeling depressed, something she was later diagnosed with, aged 10.
From BBC ● Aug. 16, 2026
“I auditioned for it while I was working at Secret Cinema and I was incredibly depressed because I was auditioning and not getting anything,” she says.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 12, 2026
They would slam an already depressed housing market suffering from record prices and nearly 7% mortgage rates.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 11, 2026
But alone in the living room, Nasir, 47, confided that his younger daughter "is depressed and does not always have strong morale to continue learning on her own at home."
From Barron's ● Aug. 11, 2026
The gentle manners and beauty of the cottagers greatly endeared them to me; when they were unhappy, I felt depressed; when they rejoiced, I sympathised in their joys.
From "Frankenstein" by Mary Shelley
There is a despondency now, with words like "depressing" and "empty" peppering the conversation.
From BBC ● Aug. 21, 2026
They aren’t living drab or depressing lives when the Guardians of the Universe activate them — they’re faring pretty well, all things considered.
From Salon ● Aug. 16, 2026
Poultry companies are producing more chicken than consumers can buy, depressing wholesale prices and squeezing their profits, the WSJ’s Patrick Thomas writes.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 11, 2026
It might be hilarious or depressing or, probably, both at once.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 5, 2026
Percy wasn’t excited about more fireworks, donut-scented smoke, or depressing captive sea creatures.
From "The Mark of Athena" by Rick Riordan
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.
