Entry Word: suppress

Function: verb

Meaning: 1 to keep from being publicly known <the government tried to suppress the truth about that incident>

Synonyms cover (up), hush (up)

Related Words censor, silence; repress, smother, squash, squelch, stifle

Phrases keep a lid on

Near Antonyms debunk, expose, reveal, show up, uncloak, uncover, unmask; disclose, divulge, tell, unveil; broadcast, circulate, publish, spread; describe, narrate, recite, recount, rehearse, relate, report

2 to refrain from openly showing or uttering <he managed to suppress a scream at the sight of the dead body> <suppressed her anger>

Synonyms choke (back), pocket, repress, smother, stifle, strangle, swallow

Related Words control, govern, handle, manage; bridle, check, curb, hold back, quell; bottle up, contain, hold in; muffle, squelch

Near Antonyms loose, release, take out, unleash, vent

3 to hold back the normal growth of <pruning helps suppress buds at the ends of developed branches and encourages new growth elsewhere> — see stunt
4 to put a stop to (something) by the use of force <nothing could suppress the rising tide of protest against the dictatorʼs latest injustices> — see quell 1