Advertisement - Continue reading below

Definition of "depress" []

  • To lower in spirits; deject. (verb-transitive)
  • To cause to drop or sink; lower: The drought depressed the water level in the reservoirs. (verb-transitive)
  • To press down: Depress the space bar on a typewriter. (verb-transitive)
  • To lessen the activity or force of; weaken: feared that rising inflation would further depress the economy. (verb-transitive)
  • To lower prices in (a financial market). (verb-transitive)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Use "depress" in a sentence
  • "With the new load of fifth-graders, plus the fourth-graders, Schaeffler anticipates an increased number of low-performing students that may again depress average scores."
  • "With the new load of fifth graders plus the fourth graders, Schaeffler anticipates an increased number of low-performing students that may again depress average scores."
  • "As an Obama supporter, surveys like this kind of depress me."