oppress
verb (used with object)
to burden with cruel or unjust impositions or restraints; subject to a burdensome or harsh exercise of authority or power.
oppresses
-
present tense formof oppress (3rd person singular).present tense
Used to describe things happening now or regularly.
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.
As many critics pointed out, if merely seeing a same-sex couple in a storybook oppresses Christians, then what about the rest of the world?
From Salon ● Aug. 13, 2025
“We do not feel our beliefs, voices and actions belong anywhere near a space that misrepresents and oppresses people of any background, ethnicity or race.”
From Seattle Times ● Oct. 25, 2022
We do not feel our beliefs, voices and actions belong anywhere near a space that misrepresents and oppresses people of any background, ethnicity or race.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 25, 2022
Ms. Kouchner quotes a saying dear to her father Bernard: “Between the strong and the weak, it’s liberty that oppresses and the law that liberates.”
From New York Times ● Jan. 29, 2021
There is a strange heaviness in the air—I say heaviness for want of a better word; I mean that it oppresses us both.
From "Dracula" by Bram Stoker
