OPPRESSIONS Synonyms: 105 Similar and Opposite Words

oppression

noun

ə-ˈpre-shən

Definition of oppression

as in sadness

a state or spell of low spirits suffered a lingering oppression in the weeks after his dog died

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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 oppression The influx of immigrants shocked this small town Lockland had for decades been home to a small population of West Africans who’d come to Ohio in the 1990s because of political and racial oppression in Mauritania. — Claire Galofaro, Los Angeles Times, 17 Sep. 2026 Rooted in opposition to the oppression and discrimination of women in Iran, the movement also seeks freedom for all Iranians systemically repressed by the Islamic government. — Lily Moayeri, SPIN, 16 Sep. 2026 Nike had plenty to say about oppression when the target was the United States. — Dan Zaksheske Outkick, FOXNews.com, 9 Sep. 2026 Into the work, esparza’s has also added a scene from the Florentine Codex showing a Spaniard whipping an Indigenous person and images of ICE raids in LA and Chicago, connecting centuries of oppression together. — Maximilíano Durón, ARTnews.com, 4 Sep. 2026 See All Example Sentences for oppression

Recent Examples of Synonyms for oppression

Noun

And that is what produces, for me, the anger and the rage and the sadness.

— Daniel D'Addario, Variety, 10 Oct. 2026
Fortuna noted rapid surveys also found that children with at least one immigrant parent are more likely to experience nightmares and higher levels of sadness.

— Carlos De Loera, Los Angeles Times, 9 Oct. 2026

Definition of sadness

Noun

The depression that plagues him in winters is nowhere to be found.

— David Mack, CNN Money, 15 Oct. 2026
But their emergence also underscores how much psychiatry still needs to learn about the biological underpinnings of depression and why patients respond differently to treatment.

— Meghana Keshavan, STAT, 15 Oct. 2026

Definition of depression

Noun

The question for me is whether or not Lloyd will also manage to capture the melancholy of a deceptively serious play, notwithstanding its reputation.

— Chris Jones, Chicago Tribune, 23 Sep. 2026
On the one hand, there’s a fascination with collective joy and the forms of vernacular invention that aspire to it; on the other, there’s an underlying melancholy that points to the inevitability of isolation, an epistemology of loneliness.

— Pablo Larios, Artforum, 1 Sep. 2026

Definition of melancholy

Noun

Following the ruling, Benson drowns her sorrows over cocktails with Sharpe, and, in a revealing, impeccably acted scene, airs out her grievances about her job.

— Marlow Stern, Variety, 9 Oct. 2026
As their division rivals popped bottles inside Yankee Stadium’s visiting clubhouse, the home side filled with frustration and sorrow.

— Gary Phillips, New York Daily News, 8 Oct. 2026

Definition of sorrow

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oppressing

oppression

oppressive

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“Oppression.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/oppression. Accessed 16 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of oppression

noun

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