clinical depression

noun

: a serious mood disorder involving one or more episodes of intense psychological depression or loss of interest or pleasure that lasts two or more weeks and is accompanied by irritability, fatigue, poor concentration, sleep disturbances, weight gain or loss, feelings of worthlessness or guilt, and sometimes suicidal tendencies : major depression, major depressive disorder

Mild depression is a normal condition, a sadness brought on by life's circumstances. Clinical depression, on the other hand, is a sadness so deep that it can lead to suicide if left untreated.

—Brenda Lane Richardson

Examples of clinical depression in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

While feeling sad after a disappointment or a loss is a normal part of being human, clinical depression, formally known as major depressive disorder, is a medical condition. —Daryl Austin, USA Today, 14 Mar. 2026

Your Mood May Improve Naturally Curcumin has potential as a stand-alone treatment and as an add-on to traditional medications for adults with clinical depression. —Lauren O'Connor, Health, 12 Mar. 2026

The difference between a problem of living (feeling down or having a fear of public speaking) and a diagnosis (clinical depression and social anxiety) is born of intensity and duration. —Big Think, 27 Nov. 2025

However, keep in mind that the winter blues are different from seasonal affective disorder (SAD), a kind of clinical depression that’s related to seasonal changes. —Helen Carefoot, Flow Space, 25 Nov. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1937, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for clinical depression

• immunosuppression
• myelosuppression
• accession
• aggression
• compression
• concession
• confession
• digression
• discretion
• expression
• impression
• obsession

Medical Definition

clinical depression

noun

: a serious mood disorder involving one or more episodes of intense psychological depression or loss of interest or pleasure that lasts two or more weeks and is accompanied by irritability, fatigue, poor concentration, sleep disturbances, weight gain or loss, feelings of worthlessness or guilt, and sometimes suicidal tendencies : major depression, major depressive disorder

Cases of clinical depression present doctors with a nasty diagnostic challenge: The malady, which strikes about 10% of the population, comes in myriad forms, each requiring different treatments.

—Science