1
as in to suppress
to put a stop to (something) by the use of force
quickly repressed the rebellion in the provincial city and restored order
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to stifle
to refrain from openly showing or uttering
you can't repress your feelings forever, so tell her how you feel about her
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of repress
Others, known as microRNAs, alter or repress other RNAs, including those that would otherwise be translated into proteins; this discovery was awarded the 2024 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine.
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Ivan Amato, Quanta Magazine, 22 Dec. 2025
Assad largely repressed and systematically excluded Syria’s Sunni Arab majority from the same preferential treatment.
—Salma Al-Shami, Foreign Affairs, 5 Dec. 2025
Plotted roughly, the movement of other AI shares, including Oracle and AMD, traced similar paths, suggesting Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang’s rejection of the AI bubble narrative initially reassured investors, but their concerns couldn’t be repressed for long.
—Yeo Boon Ping, CNBC, 21 Nov. 2025
Human rights groups say Saudi authorities continue to harshly repress dissent, including by arresting human rights defenders, journalists and political dissidents for criticism against the kingdom.
—Arkansas Online, 19 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for repress
Recent Examples of Synonyms for repress
Verb
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The lawsuit alleges that for more than a decade, beginning at least as early as January 2015, Pepsi and Walmart used their dominant positions in the beverage and grocery markets to suppress price competition.—
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The largest anti-government demonstrations to rock Iran in recent years intensified Friday night, fueling fears of growing fatalities as authorities battle to suppress the protests.—
Verb
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Overall, though, Joseph's fleet bounced back enough to stifle the tight end for the rest of the half, as Bowers finished with just one catch on three targets.—
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Lean also refuted claims that bipolar disorder stifles creativity.—
Verb
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There are glimpses of a backstage farce, with Nora trying to use a quickie with her married stage-manager lover (longtime Trier regular Anders Danielsen Lie) to quell a panic attack on opening night, then threatening to bolt.—
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The move seemed to surprise Fallon, who naturally tried to quell her tears by shouting at her.—
Verb
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Both are on a mission, handing out flyers for Luis’ missing daughter, Mar, swallowed by the seemingly endless nomadic rave culture.—
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Despite its charm, it hasn’t been swallowed by the tourist surge that defines nearby Lake Tahoe.—
Verb
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Nazism’s total domination politically and socially found an aesthetic counterpart in the visual reduction of bodies to things, ecstatically subdued before the hypnotic power of a leader, force, or sublime beauty.—
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Barack Obama also availed himself of caution, reluctance and NATO partners to use air power to subdue chaos on the ground in Libya.—
Cite this Entry
“Repress.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/repress. Accessed 12 Jan. 2026.
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