repressive
Americanadjective
adjective
-
acting to control, suppress, or restrain
-
subjecting people, a society, etc, to a state of subjugation
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of repressive
1375–1425; late Middle English < Medieval Latin repressīvus < Latin repress ( us ) ( see repress) + -īvus -ive
Explanation
Repressive things keep people from doing or saying what they want. Repressive controls on the press don't allow journalists to freely report the news. It's almost always a government, or a political or social system, that acts in a repressive way. When police officers don't let citizens videotape arrests, or a society doesn't allow girls to attend school, it's repressive. Someone growing up in a repressive family might feel cautious about saying or doing the wrong things. The adjective repressive comes from the Latin root repressus, "held back or curbed," and also "checked or restrained."
Vocabulary lists containing repressive
Boots on the Ground: America's War in Vietnam
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
Persepolis
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
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.
Chilling effects are thus not only repressive – causing self-censorship – but productive.
From Salon • May 28, 2026
Iran is consistently ranked as one of the most repressive countries in the world for press freedom.
From BBC • Apr. 11, 2026
The Southeast Asian nation of 100 million is both an economic success story, boasting eight percent growth last year, and a repressive one-party state that often jails its critics.
From Barron's • Mar. 14, 2026
Eighteen months later, the shah was gone and his repressive rule replaced with the Islamic Republic.
From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 8, 2026
That’s the kind of fatalism and pessimism typical of a repressive feudal system, where peasants have no reason to believe in the efficacy of their own work.
From "Outliers" by Malcolm Gladwell
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.
