suppress

[ suh-pres ]

/ səˈprɛs /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR suppress ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used with object)

to put an end to the activities of (a person, body of persons, etc.): to suppress the Communist and certain left-leaning parties.

to do away with by or as by authority; abolish; stop (a practice, custom, etc.).

to keep in or repress (a feeling, smile, groan, etc.).

to withhold from disclosure or publication (truth, evidence, a book, names, etc.).

to stop or arrest (a flow, hemorrhage, cough, etc.).

to vanquish or subdue (a revolt, rebellion, etc.); quell; crush.

Electricity. to reduce or eliminate (an irregular or undesired oscillation or frequency) in a circuit.

Nearby words

Origin of suppress

1375–1425; late Middle English suppressen < Latin suppressus (past participle of supprimere to press down), equivalent to sup- sup- + pressus (see press¹)

Related forms

sup·pressed·ly

[suh-prest-lee, -pres-id-] /səˈprɛst li, -ˈprɛs ɪd-/, adverbsup·press·i·ble, adjectivesup·pres·sive, adjectivesup·pres·sive·ly, adverb

sup·pres·sor, sup·press·er, nounnon·sup·pressed, adjectivenon·sup·pres·sive, adjectivenon·sup·pres·sive·ly, adverbnon·sup·pres·sive·ness, nounpre·sup·press, verb (used with object)qua·si-sup·pressed, adjectivere·sup·press, verb (used with object)self-sup·press·ing, adjectiveself-sup·pres·sive, adjectiveun·sup·pressed, adjectiveun·sup·press·i·ble, adjectiveun·sup·pres·sive, adjectivewell-sup·pressed, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for suppressing

A secular police state well practiced in suppressing internal challenges.
Fact-Checking the Sunday Shows: Dec. 14|PunditFact.com|December 14, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Instead of suppressing turnout, the law seemed to spur people to go to the polls.
Cleveland, LeBron James, and the 2016 Republican Convention|Lloyd Green|July 14, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Plus, he crafted the Lyons-Seward Treaty, joining the U.S and Great Britain in suppressing the international slave trade.
P.J. O’Rourke: Orwell Was Right|P. J. O’Rourke|March 28, 2014|DAILY BEAST
He was squeezing and suppressing the rights of women and causing heartburn among non-Muslims.
Leslie H. Gelb on the Democracy-Elections Trap in Egypt|Leslie H. Gelb|July 22, 2013|DAILY BEAST

Suppressing the truth will leave to deadly consequences for you and your family.
Rogue L.A. Cop’s Facebook Manifesto: ‘You Will Now Live the Life of Prey’|The Daily Beast|February 8, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Womans motive for suppressing her intellectual powers is exactly the same as her motive for not developing her physical powers.
The Joys of Being a Woman|Winifred Kirkland
He hastened away to India to aid in suppressing the Sepoy mutiny, eventually becoming viceroy after another campaign in China.
Beacon Lights of History, Volume XIV|John Lord
"Whow, I'm sleepy tonight," laughed Nelly, suppressing a yawn.
Peggy Stewart at School|Gabrielle E. Jackson
But there was no suppressing Dicky or his boon companion Alec.
The Great Airship.|F. S. Brereton
He was the first to suggest that punishment was less effective in suppressing it than prevention.
History of the English People, Volume III (of 8)|John Richard Green

British Dictionary definitions for suppressing

suppress

/ (səˈprɛs) /

verb (tr)

to put an end to; prohibit

to hold in check; restrainI was obliged to suppress a smile

to withhold from circulation or publicationto suppress seditious pamphlets

to stop the activities of; crushto suppress a rebellion

electronics

to reduce or eliminate (unwanted oscillations) in a circuit
to eliminate (a particular frequency or group of frequencies) in a signal

psychiatry

to resist consciously (an idea or a desire entering one's mind)
to exercise self-control by preventing the expression of (certain desires)Compare repress (def. 3)

Derived Formssuppresser, nounsuppressible, adjective

Word Origin for suppress

C14: from Latin suppressus held down, from supprimere to restrain, from sub- down + premere to press

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for suppressing

suppress

late 14c., "to put down by force or authority," from Latin suppressus, past participle of supprimere "press down, stop, check, stifle," from sub "down, under" (see sub-) + premere "push against" (see press (v.1)). Sense of "prevent or prohibit the circulation of" is from 1550s. Related: Suppressed; suppressing.

Medicine definitions for suppressing

suppress

[ sə-prĕs′ ]

v.

To curtail or inhibit the activity of something, such as the immune system.

To deliberately exclude unacceptable desires or thoughts from the mind.

To reduce the incidence or severity of a condition or symptom, such as a hemorrhage.

suppress

verb (used with object)

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Nearby words

Origin of suppress

Examples from the Web for suppressing

suppress

verb (tr)

Word Origin for suppress

suppress

suppress

v.