suppress

verb sup·press \ sə-ˈpres \

|Updated on: 21 Jun 2018

Examples: suppress in a Sentence

suppressed; suppressing; suppresses

transitive verb

1 : to put down by authority or force : subdue

suppress a riot

2 : to keep from public knowledge: such as

a : to keep secret

b : to stop or prohibit the publication or revelation of

suppress the test results

3 a : to exclude from consciousness

b : to keep from giving vent to : check

suppressed her anger

4 obsolete : to press down

5 a : to restrain from a usual course or action

suppress a cough

b : to inhibit the growth or development of

6 : to inhibit the genetic expression of

suppress a mutation

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suppressibility

play \sə-ˌpre-sə-ˈbi-lə-tē\ noun

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suppressible

play \sə-ˈpre-sə-bəl\ adjective

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suppressive

play \sə-ˈpre-siv\ adjective

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suppressiveness

play \sə-ˈpre-siv-nəs\ noun

See suppress defined for English-language learners

See suppress defined for kids

Examples of suppress in a Sentence

Political dissent was brutally suppressed.
The governor tried to suppress the news.
He struggled to suppress his feelings of jealousy.
She could not suppress her anger.
I had to suppress an urge to tell him what I really thought.

Recent Examples of suppress from the Web

But the insurgency has largely been suppressed over the past decade by a ferocious military campaign, without snuffing out tribals’ complaints of injustice.

— The Economist, "Stone-carving villagers make Indian officials jittery," 7 June 2018
After calling Kim Kardashian West out for selling appetite-suppressing lollipops, Jamil asked Vera magazine, Virgin Airlines’s in-flight magazine, not to Photoshop her cover shoot with them.

— sarah spellings, The Cut, "Jameela Jamil Asked Not to Be Photoshopped for Cover Shoot," 1 June 2018
Kardashian West came under fire on Wednesday after posting an ad about the appetite-suppressing lollipops on Instagram.

— jodi guglielmi, PEOPLE.com, "Tori Spelling, Teresa Giudice Also Hawk Kim Kardashian’s Controversial Lollipops," 17 May 2018
But her latest product-endorsing post, for a Flat Tummy Co. lollipop, which claims to be appetite-suppressing, has crossed a line, as far as her followers are concerned.

— krystin arneson, Glamour, "Kim Kardashian Posted an Instagram Ad for an Appetite-Suppressing Lollipop, and Twitter Users Are Not Happy," 16 May 2018
Otherwise, some science-suppressing hacks who prioritize enriching themselves and their buddies might hijack the process!

— bess levin, The Hive, "White House Thought Burying a Report About Poison Drinking Water Was a Great Idea," 14 May 2018
Patients must take immune-suppressing drugs to prevent transplant rejection, just like organ recipients, and these drugs have significant side effects.

— marie mccullough, Philly.com, "Cooper surgeon helped with one of the world's first genital transplants," 8 May 2018
El Niño, in particular, suppresses Atlantic hurricanes.

— denise chow /, NBC News, "Hurricane season is here. An extreme weather expert explains what's in store.," 3 June 2018
Silicon Valley has come under fire in recent months for being seen as suppressing conservative voices, including from some senior members of the Republican party.

— chris ciaccia, Fox News, "Google under fire for listing 'Nazism' as the ideology of the California Republican Party," 1 June 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'suppress.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of suppress

Middle English, from Latin suppressus, past participle of supprimere, from sub- + premere to press — more at press

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 14th century

in the meaning defined at sense 1

See Words from the same year

suppress Synonyms

Other Psychology Terms

fetish, hypochondria, intelligence, mania, narcissism, neurosis, pathological, psychosis, schadenfreude, subliminal

SUPPRESS Defined for English Language Learners

suppress

verb

: to end or stop (something) by force
: to keep (something) secret : to not allow people to know about or see (something)
: to not allow yourself to feel, show, or be affected by (an emotion)