repression

noun

re·​pres·​sion ri-ˈpre-shən 

1

a

: the action or process of repressing : the state of being repressed

repression of unpopular opinions

b

: an instance of repressing

racial repressions

2

a

: a mental process by which distressing thoughts, memories, or impulses that may give rise to anxiety are excluded from consciousness and left to operate in the unconscious

b

: an item so excluded

repressionist

ri-ˈpre-sh(ə-)nist 

adjective

Synonyms of repression

• restraint
• discipline
• suppression
• inhibition

Examples of repression in a Sentence

the state's repression of its citizens

They survived 60 years of political repression.

Recent Examples on the Web

That’s the scene-setting intertitle that opens The Secret Agent, Kleber Mendonça Filho’s extraordinary excavation of a bygone age of national repression that may or may not bear a striking resemblance to more recent ages of authoritarianism. —David Fear, Rolling Stone, 26 Nov. 2025

Human rights organizations, including the United Nations, documented widespread political repression and a mass exodus of Venezuelans fleeing the country. —MSNBC Newsweek, 25 Nov. 2025

There is no more war, no more repression, and no more poverty. —The New Yorker, New Yorker, 24 Nov. 2025

Trump’s sinister achievement is to delegitimize the old intellectual and political establishment while at the same time cementing the racial hierarchies and regimes of repression that this elite exploited during the war on terror. —Victor J. Blue, Harpers Magazine, 23 Nov. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Rhymes for repression

• accession
• aggression
• compression
• concession
• confession
• depression
• digression
• discretion
• expression
• impression
• obsession
• oppression

Kids Definition

repression

noun

re·​pres·​sion ri-ˈpresh-ən 

1

: the act of repressing : the state of being repressed

2

: a process of the mind by which painful or disturbing thoughts or desires are kept from conscious awareness

Medical Definition

repression

noun

re·​pres·​sion ri-ˈpresh-ən 

1

: the action or process of repressing

gene repression

2

a

: a process by which unacceptable desires or impulses are excluded from consciousness and left to operate in the unconscious compare suppression sense c

b

: an item so excluded