depressed; depressing; depresses
2
a
: to press down
depress the backspace key
b
: to cause to sink to a lower position
3
: to lessen the activity or strength of
drugs that may depress the appetite
4
: sadden, discourage
don't let the news depress you
5
: to decrease the market value or marketability of
Examples of depress in a Sentence
The news seemed to depress him a little.
I don't mean to depress you, but there's no way we can win.
We were all depressed by the loss.
You shouldn't let this kind of problem depress you.
These changes could depress the economy.
Market conditions are likely to depress earnings in the next quarter.
depressing the price of a stock
Slowly depress the car's brake pedal.
Depress the “shift” key on your keyboard.
The doctor will depress your tongue and look at your throat.
Recent Examples on the Web
Oop, depressing parental-lore reveal time.
—
Emma Specter, Vogue, 27 Dec. 2025
There has also been an appetite from consumers for mobile apps and tech products aimed at combating doomscrolling, or the tendency to scroll excessively online, which often entails heavy consumption of depressing content.
—Angela Yang, NBC news, 25 Dec. 2025
However, today news from the media or publishing sources might confuse or depress you.
—Georgia Nicols, Denver Post, 20 Dec. 2025
As production rises in those places, the entrance of Alaskan natural gas into the market raises the risk for global oversupply, which could depress prices and reduce profitability.
—Skip York, The Conversation, 9 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for depress
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Emma Specter, Vogue, 27 Dec. 2025
There has also been an appetite from consumers for mobile apps and tech products aimed at combating doomscrolling, or the tendency to scroll excessively online, which often entails heavy consumption of depressing content.
—Angela Yang, NBC news, 25 Dec. 2025
However, today news from the media or publishing sources might confuse or depress you.
—Georgia Nicols, Denver Post, 20 Dec. 2025
As production rises in those places, the entrance of Alaskan natural gas into the market raises the risk for global oversupply, which could depress prices and reduce profitability.
—Skip York, The Conversation, 9 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for depress
Cite this Entry
“Depress.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/depress. Accessed 31 Dec. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
depress
verb
de·press
di-ˈpres 
1
a
: to press down
b
: to cause to sink to a lower position
2
: to lessen the activity or strength of
3
: sadden, discourage
4
: to lessen in price or value : depreciate
depressingly
adverb
-iŋ-lē
Medical Definition
depress
transitive verb
de·press
di-ˈpres
1
: to diminish the activity, strength, or yield of
able to depress irritability of the heart muscle by the use of such a drug as procaine
2
: to lower in spirit or mood
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