English Dictionary
Definition of “repress”
repress (rɪˈprɛs
)
Definitions
verb (tr)
- to keep (feelings, etc) under control; suppress or restrain ⇒
to repress a desire
- to put into a state of subjugation ⇒
to repress a people
- psychoanalysis to banish (thoughts and impulses that conflict with conventional standards of conduct) from one's conscious mind
Alternative Forms
reˈpresser noun reˈpressible adjective Word Origin
C14: from Latin reprimere to press back, from re- + premere to pressC14: from Latin to press back, from + to 1
Synonyms
View thesaurus entry
=
control,
suppress,
hold back,
bottle up,
check,
master,
hold in,
overcome,
curb,
restrain,
inhibit,
overpower,
keep in check =
subdue,
abuse,
crush,
oppress,
quash,
wrong,
persecute,
quell,
subjugate,
maltreat,
trample underfoot,
tyrannize over,
rule with an iron hand
Usage examples
The process of flowering hadn't made it any more interesting, however, and as she read now she couldn't repress the occasional groan.
Richard Francis, PROSPECT HILL (2003)Are we to ignore them, repress them, speak out about them - or can we use them in the service of our work?
British Medical Journal (2002)Speakers who lack confidence repress themselves and their inclination to stir even a modicum.
Globe and Mail (2003)This can mean they repress their problems and deal with them in inappropriate or anti-social ways.
Sun, News of the World (2004)The government used the law to repress radical clubs and built barracks to stop soldiers being infected by radical notions.
French, David, The British way in Warfare - 1688-2000 (1990)
