oppress
Verb
Verb Forms: oppressed, oppressing, oppresses
- To burden someone with unjust hardship or tyrannical authority.
- come down on or keep down by unjust use of one's authority
- "The government oppresses political activists"
- cause to suffer
- To keep down by unjust force.
- To make sad or gloomy.
- Physically to press down on (someone) with harmful effects; to smother, crush.
- To sexually violate; to rape.
Examples
- The rural poor were oppressed by the land-owners.
- The weight of a terrible rack seemed to oppress his chances of winning.
- We were oppressed by the constant grey skies.
Origin / Etymology
From Middle English oppressen, from Old French oppresser, from Medieval Latin oppressare (“to press against, oppress”), frequentative of Latin opprimere, past participle oppressus (“to press against, press together, oppress”), from ob (“against”) + premere, past participle pressus (“to press”); see press.
Synonyms
crush, persecute, suppress, aggrieve, attrist, begloom, begrieve, besorrow, bring down, contristate, dash, deject, depress, desolate, dispirit, downbear, engrieve, forset, get down, grieve, grieven, moan, oppress, outrage, rue, sadden, sadden up, squash, tristitiate, ungladden, unhappy, upset, violate, vitiate
Scrabble Score: 11
oppress: valid Scrabble (US) TWL Wordoppress: valid Scrabble Word in Merriam-Webster MW Dictionary
oppress: valid Scrabble Word in International Collins CSW Dictionary