as in unemotional
Related Words
Relevance
Dissimilar Words
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 repressive
New Delhi’s support enabled Hasina to undermine democratic institutions, politicize the judiciary and Election Commission, and enforce repressive laws such as the Digital Security Act, which limited free speech online and allowed arbitrary arrests and detentions of opponents of the regime.
—
Muhib Rahman, Foreign Affairs, 12 Nov. 2025
On Monday, he was posthumously named a national hero of Indonesia – prompting protests from human rights groups and victims who decried the award as whitewashing a repressive regime that left hundreds of thousands dead, according to historians.
—Jessie Yeung, CNN Money, 11 Nov. 2025
Valbuena was returning to Venezuela, where nearly 8 million people have fled since 2014 under the repressive government of autocratic President Nicolás Maduro, according to the United Nations International Organization for Migration.
—Daniel Gonzalez, AZCentral.com, 6 Nov. 2025
The Communist Party, formed in 1919, yoked its reputation to the Soviet Union run by Vladimir Lenin and then Joseph Stalin, one of the most repressive regimes in modern history.
—Literary Hub, 5 Nov. 2025
In less than one electoral cycle, Maduro eliminated all democratic traces and turned the system into one of the most repressive, poverty-producing, and corrupt machines in the world.
—Javier Corrales, Time, 27 Oct. 2025
Petro has repeatedly defended his policy, which moves away from a repressive approach and prioritizes reaching agreements with growers of coca leaf - the raw material for cocaine - to encourage them to switch to other crops, pursuing major drug lords and combating money laundering.
—NPR, 24 Oct. 2025
Mitigate risk, learn and innovate The success rate of nonviolent civil resistance is declining while repressive tactics by autocrats are evolving.
—Shelley Inglis, The Conversation, 19 Oct. 2025
From this conspiratorialism have flowed years of censorship, data localization, online-speech criminalization, and other digitally repressive actions by the Kremlin.
—Justin Sherman, The Atlantic, 11 Oct. 2025
Muhib Rahman, Foreign Affairs, 12 Nov. 2025
On Monday, he was posthumously named a national hero of Indonesia – prompting protests from human rights groups and victims who decried the award as whitewashing a repressive regime that left hundreds of thousands dead, according to historians.
—Jessie Yeung, CNN Money, 11 Nov. 2025
Valbuena was returning to Venezuela, where nearly 8 million people have fled since 2014 under the repressive government of autocratic President Nicolás Maduro, according to the United Nations International Organization for Migration.
—Daniel Gonzalez, AZCentral.com, 6 Nov. 2025
The Communist Party, formed in 1919, yoked its reputation to the Soviet Union run by Vladimir Lenin and then Joseph Stalin, one of the most repressive regimes in modern history.
—Literary Hub, 5 Nov. 2025
In less than one electoral cycle, Maduro eliminated all democratic traces and turned the system into one of the most repressive, poverty-producing, and corrupt machines in the world.
—Javier Corrales, Time, 27 Oct. 2025
Petro has repeatedly defended his policy, which moves away from a repressive approach and prioritizes reaching agreements with growers of coca leaf - the raw material for cocaine - to encourage them to switch to other crops, pursuing major drug lords and combating money laundering.
—NPR, 24 Oct. 2025
Mitigate risk, learn and innovate The success rate of nonviolent civil resistance is declining while repressive tactics by autocrats are evolving.
—Shelley Inglis, The Conversation, 19 Oct. 2025
From this conspiratorialism have flowed years of censorship, data localization, online-speech criminalization, and other digitally repressive actions by the Kremlin.
—Justin Sherman, The Atlantic, 11 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for repressive
Adjective
-
That’s the image projected by Chicago’s pragmatic, unemotional manager, Craig Counsell, who continues to get lustily booed in his hometown.—
Patrick Mooney,
New York Times,
7 Oct. 2025
-
He is learned, frail, accomplished, absent, selfish and unemotional.—
Joe Otterson,
Variety,
2 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
The University of Oregon product has made four rather unimpressive starts under center, which has led to many campaigning for Sanders to ultimately supplant him.—
Matthew Schmidt,
MSNBC Newsweek,
4 Nov. 2025
-
The Horned Frogs could’ve taken Utah’s spot on the ballot, but once again, TCU was unimpressive in its win over West Virginia.—
Steven Johnson,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
26 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Repressive.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/repressive. Accessed 28 Nov. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share