depress. The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language: Fourth Edition. 2000.

The American Heritage^® Dictionary of the English Language: Fourth Edition. 2000.

depress

SYLLABICATION:	de·press
PRONUNCIATION:	d-prs
TRANSITIVE VERB:	Inflected forms: de·pressed, de·press·ing, de·press·es 1. To lower in spirits; deject. 2a. To cause to drop or sink; lower: The drought depressed the water level in the reservoirs. b. To press down: Depress the space bar on a typewriter. 3. To lessen the activity or force of; weaken: feared that rising inflation would further depress the economy. 4. To lower prices in (a financial market).
ETYMOLOGY:	Middle English depressen, to push down, from Old French depresser, from Latin dprimere, dpress- : d-, de- + premere, to press; see per-⁴ in Appendix I.
OTHER FORMS:	de·pressi·ble —ADJECTIVE


The American Heritage^® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition. Copyright © 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by the Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.