depresses

Definition of depressesnext
present tense third-person singular of depress
1
2
as in lowers
to cause to fall intentionally or unintentionally construction workers depressed the roadbed in order to make way for an overpass

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

3
4

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of depresses Usually a warm El Nino spikes temperatures and its cool La Nina flip side depresses temperatures. Dallas Morning News, 14 Jan. 2026 Empirical studies confirm that reliance on large donors depresses participation in time-intensive legislative activities—things such as bill sponsorship, floor debate, and committee work. Duncan Hosie, The Atlantic, 13 Jan. 2026 Their style of pitching — relentlessly pound the strike zone — works well in a ballpark where the thick air depresses doubles and triples. Tyler Kepner, New York Times, 16 Oct. 2025 As Aerohart explains of its own device, the user simply puts the tinder – char cloth seems to be the most recommended – inside the cavity at the tip of the removable piston rod, reinstalls the piston back into the cylinder, then firmly and rapidly depresses it. New Atlas, 6 Oct. 2025 At one moment in the concerto, the soloist—here the brilliant, committed young pianist Jeonghwan Kim—silently depresses a C-major triad with the left hand and then bangs out a C-major triad with the right, so that the lower strings resonate. Alex Ross, New Yorker, 8 Sep. 2025 As the user depresses a key, the backside of the key (which is not visible) touches a thin layer of material. Bestreviews, Mercury News, 13 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for depresses
Verb
  • However, that really saddens me now.
    Abigail Wise, Outside, 3 Jan. 2026
  • Being stuck in the middle is what saddens the Others.
    Ben Rosenstock, Vulture, 21 Nov. 2025
Verb
  • Obviously, police not shooting lowers the risk of harm to the suspect.
    Ben Jones, The Conversation, 8 Jan. 2026
  • That lowers his ultimate value a bit.
    Patrick Mooney, New York Times, 7 Jan. 2026
Verb
  • This reduces the risk of unforeseen physics complications needed for commercial operation, according to the Type One Energy.
    Prabhat Ranjan Mishra, Interesting Engineering, 16 Jan. 2026
  • Metro also began a tap-to-exit program at certain high-crime stations, with the idea that removing fare-jumpers also reduces crime.
    Steve Scauzillo, Daily News, 15 Jan. 2026
Verb
  • Long-standing geological evidence from Antarctica and elsewhere around the world shows that as ice melts and flows off the land, the land itself rises because the ice no longer presses it down.
    Keiji Horikawa, The Conversation, 22 Dec. 2025
  • But as any reader knows, the life ruining is the point, and Red Rising is a book that Abughazaleh presses into a lot of people’s hands.
    James Folta, Literary Hub, 19 Dec. 2025
Verb
  • His policies have been instrumental in dismantling the criminal enterprise that oppresses the Venezuelan people.
    Amir Daftari, MSNBC Newsweek, 10 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • The archer is known to be a magical being that throws zingers, or in this case, spells, at those who frustrate their peace.
    Lisa Stardust, PEOPLE, 12 Jan. 2026
  • Grabbing a gun, Lexy gets the upper hand, just as Anna’s detective husband, Jack (Jon Bernthal), arrives and throws Anna out of the way.
    Derek Lawrence, HollywoodReporter, 12 Jan. 2026
Verb
  • Around the summer solstice the alligator mother shoves vegetation from her wetland habitat into a pile to create a nest.
    Elizabeth Preston, Scientific American, 16 Dec. 2025
  • When Arthur tries to stop the stranger who has invaded his home from rifling through his drawers, Frank shoves the frail man to the ground.
    Amanda Whiting, Vulture, 29 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • That last hurdle, safely landing a SpaceX Starship HLS (Human Landing System) spacecraft, carrying two astronauts, upright on the moon, particularly troubles Green.
    Dan Vergano, Scientific American, 23 Oct. 2025
  • Rather, what troubles him are the claims that the song’s success has been manufactured.
    Melinda Newman, Billboard, 1 Oct. 2025

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Depresses.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/depresses. Accessed 17 Jan. 2026.

More from Merriam-Webster on depresses

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!