oppressed

[uh-prest]

adjective

1. burdened with cruel or unjust impositions or restraints; subjected to a burdensome or harsh exercise of authority or power.

   He's spent over three years documenting the lives of poor, exploited, and oppressed peoples in Latin America.

2. weighed down by thoughts or feelings that lie heavily on the mind or spirit.

   The fix for a hurt heart, broken spirit, or oppressed mind is not always easy, but there is a path to recovery.

noun

(used with a plural verb)

1. Usually the oppressed oppressed people collectively.

   We cannot proclaim individual liberty and at the same time show no solidarity with the oppressed.

verb

1. the simple past tense and past participle of oppress.

Other Word Forms

• unoppressed adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of oppressed¹

First recorded in 1350–1400; oppress ( def. ) + -ed ² ( def. )

Example Sentences

The Sunni-dominated structure was overturned, and members of the Shia majority, previously oppressed, were now eagerly taking their place at the top of the system.

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What the play most painfully illustrates is that for women like these—impoverished or politically oppressed—appealing options are nonexistent.

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What a difference, he said, to have a decision-maker in the White House with family roots in another country long oppressed by an authoritarian regime.

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Leaning heavily on Jeffersonian rhetoric, the Browns called on the “oppressed” populace to rise and assert “their natural rights” as “citizens of a free republic.”

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In another soaring room, dramatic bronze sculptures flip the script on the triumphs of Western civilization — placing the focus on the oppressed.

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Related Words

• abused www.thesaurus.com
• destitute 
• distressed 
• enslaved 
• exploited 
• helpless 
• persecuted