Adjacent Words

Repress definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

REPRESS', v.t. [L. repressus, reprimo; re and premo, to press.]
1. To crush; to quell; to put down; to subdue; to suppress; as, to repress sedition or rebellion; to repress the first risings of discontent.
2. To check; to restrain.
Such kings favor the innocent, repress the bold.
REPRESS', n. The act of subduing. [Not in use.]

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

v
1: put down by force or intimidation; "The government quashes any attempt of an uprising"; "China keeps down her dissidents very efficiently"; "The rich landowners subjugated the peasants working the land" [syn: repress, quash, keep down, subdue, subjugate, reduce]
2: conceal or hide; "smother a yawn"; "muffle one's anger"; "strangle a yawn" [syn: smother, stifle, strangle, muffle, repress]
3: put out of one's consciousness [syn: suppress, repress]
4: block the action of

Merriam Webster's

verb Etymology: Middle English, from Anglo-French represser, from Latin repressus, past participle of reprimere to check, from re- + premere to press — more at press Date: 14th century transitive verb 1. a. to check by or as if by pressure ; curb <injustice was repressed> b. to put down by force ; subdue <repress a disturbance> 2. a. to hold in by self-control <repressed a laugh> b. to prevent the natural or normal expression, activity, or development of <repressed her anger> 3. to exclude from consciousness <repressed the memory of abuse> 4. to inactivate (a gene or formation of a gene product) by allosteric combination at a DNA binding site intransitive verb to take repressive action • repressibility noun • repressible adjective • repressive adjective • repressively adverb • repressiveness noun

Oxford Reference Dictionary

v.tr. 1 a check; restrain; keep under; quell. b suppress; prevent from sounding, rioting, or bursting out. 2 Psychol. actively exclude (an unwelcome thought) from conscious awareness. 3 (usu. as repressed adj.) subject (a person) to the suppression of his or her thoughts or impulses. Derivatives: represser n. repressible adj. repression n. repressive adj. repressively adv. repressiveness n. repressor n. Etymology: ME f. L reprimere (as RE-, premere PRESS(1))

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Repress Re*press" (r?-pr?s"), v. t. [Pref. re- + press.] To press again.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Repress Re*press" (r?-pr?s"), v. t. [Pref. re- + press: cf. L. reprimere, repressum. Cf. Reprimand.] 1. To press back or down effectually; to crush down or out; to quell; to subdue; to supress; as, to repress sedition or rebellion; to repress the first risings of discontent. 2. Hence, to check; to restrain; to keep back. Desire of wine and all delicious drinks, . . . Thou couldst repress. --Milton. Syn: To crush; overpower; subdue; suppress; restrain; quell; curb; check.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Repress Re*press", n. The act of repressing. [Obs.]

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(represses, repressing, repressed) 1. If you repress a feeling, you make a deliberate effort not to show or have this feeling. It is anger that is repressed that leads to violence and loss of control. ...repressed aggression. = suppress VERB: V n, V-ed 2. If you repress a smile, sigh, or moan, you try hard not to smile, sigh, or moan. I couldn't repress a sigh of admiration. VERB: V n 3. If a section of society is repressed, their freedom is restricted by the people who have authority over them. ...a UN resolution banning him from repressing his people. VERB: V n [disapproval]

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

v. a. 1. Suppress, subdue, crush, quell, overpower, overcome, put down, smother. 2. Restrain, check, curb, bridle, control, chasten, rein in, sober down. 3. Calm, quiet, appease.

Moby Thesaurus

arrest, asphyxiate, ban, bar, bate, beat down, black out, blunt, bottle up, break, browbeat, bulldoze, bully, castrate, censor, check, choke off, clamp down on, coerce, collect, compel, constrain, contain, control, cool, cork, cork up, countercheck, cow, crack down on, crush, curb, dam up, damp, damp down, dampen, daunt, debar, delay, deny, despotize, detain, deter, disallow, discourage, disedge, domineer, domineer over, draw the teeth, drown, dull, embargo, enjoin, enslave, exclude, exclude from, extinguish, forbid, frustrate, gag, grind, grind down, hamper, henpeck, hinder, hold back, hold down, hold in, hold in check, hold up, hugger-mugger, hush, hush up, hush-hush, impede, inhibit, intercept, interdict, interfere, intermeddle, interrupt, intervene, intimidate, jump on, keep, keep back, keep down, keep in, keep in check, keep under, keep under control, kill, limit, lock in, lord it over, maintain, meddle, muffle, muzzle, obtund, oppose, oppress, outlaw, overawe, overbear, overcome, overmaster, override, pour water on, preclude, preserve, press heavy on, prevent, prohibit, proscribe, put down, quash, quell, quench, refuse, rein, reject, resist, restrain, retain, retard, retund, ride over, ride roughshod over, rule out, save, save up, say no to, scotch, set back, shush, shut down on, shut out, silence, simmer down, sit down on, sit on, slacken, smash, smother, snub, squash, squelch, stanch, stifle, strangle, stultify, subdue, subjugate, sublimate, suffocate, suppress, taboo, terrorize, throttle, trample down, trample upon, tread down, tread upon, turn, tyrannize, tyrannize over, unman, walk all over, walk over, weaken, weigh heavy on