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Repressed: meaning, definitions and examples

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repressed

 

[ rɪˈprɛst ]

Adjective / Verb
Context #1 | Adjective

psychological

Repressed refers to emotions, thoughts, or memories that an individual has unconsciously blocked from their conscious awareness. These repressed feelings often stem from traumatic experiences and can manifest in various psychological symptoms.

Synonyms

hidden, suppressed, unexpressed

Examples of usage

  • Her repressed anger towards her father affected her relationships with men.
  • Therapy helped her uncover and process her repressed memories of childhood abuse.
Context #2 | Verb

societal

Repressed can also refer to a group or individual being oppressed or subjected to unfair treatment, often by a dominant group or authority. This can lead to feelings of frustration, powerlessness, and resentment.

Synonyms

oppressed, subjugated, suppressed

Examples of usage

  • The government repressed the freedom of speech by censoring the media.
  • The repressed minority protested against the discriminatory policies.

Translations

Translations of the word "repressed" in other languages:

🇵🇹 reprimido

🇮🇳 दबाया हुआ

🇩🇪 unterdrückt

🇮🇩 tertekan

🇺🇦 пригнічений

🇵🇱 stłumiony

🇯🇵 抑圧された

🇫🇷 réprimé

🇪🇸 reprimido

🇹🇷 bastırılmış

🇰🇷 억압된

🇸🇦 مقموع

🇨🇿 potlačený

🇸🇰 potlačený

🇨🇳 被压抑的

🇸🇮 potlačen

🇮🇸 bældur

🇰🇿 қысым көрген

🇬🇪 დამწუხრებული

🇦🇿 basdırılmış

🇲🇽 reprimido

Etymology

The word 'repressed' originated from the Latin word 'repressus', which means 'to press back'. It first appeared in English in the 16th century. The psychological sense of 'repressed' emerged in the 19th century with the development of psychoanalytic theory by Sigmund Freud.

See also: depress, express, impress, oppress, press, pressing, pressingly, pressings, pressure, pressuring, repress.

Word Frequency Rank

Ranked #12,362, this word falls into high-advanced vocabulary. It appears less frequently but is valuable for expressing precise meanings in specific contexts.