as in persecuted
suffering grave abuse or injustice at the hands of one in authority
setting out on a quixotic quest to right wrongs and to raise up the oppressed peoples of the world
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
1
as in depressed
to make sad
this gloomy weather is oppressing all of us
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in overwhelmed
to subject to incapacitating emotional or mental stress
a film about a man who is haunted and oppressed by the secrets of his past
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of oppressed
Liza Esquibias, PEOPLE, 7 Sep. 2025
Even the long oppressed Russian people would cheer.
—Peter Lucas, Boston Herald, 21 Aug. 2025
Essence, 3 Oct. 2025
Hamas has terrorized the Israeli people and oppressed the people of Gaza, causing horrific suffering.
—Ben Kelly, MSNBC Newsweek, 21 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for oppressed
Adjective
The series was originally based on a novel by Margaret Atwood and followed June's life in a dystopian world called Gilead following a Second American Civil War, where women are oppressed and only used in society for their fertility.
—Liza Esquibias, PEOPLE, 7 Sep. 2025
Even the long oppressed Russian people would cheer.
—Peter Lucas, Boston Herald, 21 Aug. 2025
Verb
However, when your organization was founded less than 45 years after slavery was abolished, when Black women were still being forced to be wet nurses to the very children of those who oppressed them and lynching was a common occurrence below the Mason-Dixon Line?
—Essence, 3 Oct. 2025
Hamas has terrorized the Israeli people and oppressed the people of Gaza, causing horrific suffering.
—Ben Kelly, MSNBC Newsweek, 21 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for oppressed
Recent Examples of Synonyms for oppressed
Verb
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Rather than feeling triumphant at how believable ELIZA was, Weizenbaum was depressed by how gullible people seemed to be.—
Jeremy Kahn,
Fortune,
26 Aug. 2025
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Her research has shown that lynchings depressed the rate of patent applications by Black Americans, which could have otherwise contributed to innovation and economic growth.—
Miranda Jeyaretnam,
Time,
26 Aug. 2025
Verb
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But courts were overwhelmed by a flood of asylum seekers—a long-standing systemic shortage exacerbated by Biden’s inclusive policies.—
Jon Lee Anderson,
New Yorker,
29 Sep. 2025
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And the first-half performance in Seville, as Postecoglou’s side overwhelmed a very strong Real Betis, was enough to prompt a huge sense of positivity.—
Paul Taylor,
New York Times,
29 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Johnson’s tight friendship with Bukele troubled top State Department officials in the Biden administration, who asked his successor, Jean Manes, to look into the firing of the contractor.—
T. Christian Miller,
ProPublica,
30 Sep. 2025
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The four-time Formula One champion began in pole position after a chaotic qualifying session on Saturday and was never troubled after making a good start in Baku.—
Jamie Barton,
CNN Money,
21 Sep. 2025
Verb
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The Inter Milan footballing midfield maestro, and his wife Sinem, have teamed up to announce the creation of the Çalhanoğlu Forest, an initiative that will see 10,000 saplings (young trees) planted in the Aydın Province of Kuşadası, which was devastated by wildfires in June 2024.—
William Jones,
USA Today,
3 Oct. 2025
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Still, the damage is done, and Ka-young is devastated by the death of her grandmother.—
Kayti Burt,
Time,
3 Oct. 2025
Verb
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This is the cost of having been tortured in public.—
Romina Ruiz-Goiriena,
USA Today,
4 Oct. 2025
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Hoping to better understand the demand for smutty scares, Hitchcock and his wife, Alma Reville (Olivia Williams), spend an interminable evening at the theater surrounded by people throwing popcorn and making out while the topless woman onscreen is tortured and killed in a masked man’s dungeon.—
Ben Travers,
IndieWire,
4 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Married Matt and Amber Barnett overcame a little bit of jealousy and a lot of credit card debt to cultivate a stable relationship.—
Randall Colburn,
Entertainment Weekly,
1 Oct. 2025
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Mookie Betts overcame his past October struggles and was their steadiest presence.—
Fabian Ardaya,
New York Times,
1 Oct. 2025
Verb
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This shows that parents and caregivers are growing wary of mounting student loan debt and are reluctant to have their children burdened by it in the future.—
De Elizabeth,
Parents,
1 Oct. 2025
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They also aren’t burdened with making sure any of their shots match, since in essence any take can be cut up into a master, close-ups, two-shots, or whatever else Cameron decides.—
Jim Hemphill,
IndieWire,
1 Oct. 2025
Verb
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In the fifth inning, Ramírez crushed a 418-foot homer into the stands in left field, as Cleveland took a 2-1 lead.—
Ryan Ford,
Freep.com,
6 Oct. 2025
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When polar explorer Ernest Shackleton wrote this journal entry on October 27, 1915, his dreams of reaching Antarctica had been famously crushed — along with his ship, HMS Endurance.—
Mindy Weisberger,
CNN Money,
6 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Oppressed.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/oppressed. Accessed 8 Oct. 2025.
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