suppress
Americanverb (used with object)
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suppresses,
present (3rd person singular)
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suppressed,
past participle, past
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suppressing
present participle
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to put an end to the activities of (a person, body of persons, etc.).
to suppress the Communist and certain left-leaning parties.
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to do away with by or as by authority; abolish; stop (a practice, custom, etc.).
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to keep in or repress (a feeling, smile, groan, etc.).
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to withhold from disclosure or publication (truth, evidence, a book, names, etc.).
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to stop or arrest (a flow, hemorrhage, cough, etc.).
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to vanquish or subdue (a revolt, rebellion, etc.); quell; crush.
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Genetics. to keep (a gene) from being expressed.
Let's say that future genetic engineers discover a gene for suicidal depression, and learn how to suppress the gene or adjust it.
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Electricity. to reduce or eliminate (an irregular or undesired oscillation or frequency) in a circuit.
verb
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to put an end to; prohibit
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to hold in check; restrain
I was obliged to suppress a smile
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to withhold from circulation or publication
to suppress seditious pamphlets
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to stop the activities of; crush
to suppress a rebellion
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electronics
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to reduce or eliminate (unwanted oscillations) in a circuit
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to eliminate (a particular frequency or group of frequencies) in a signal
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psychiatry
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to resist consciously (an idea or a desire entering one's mind)
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to exercise self-control by preventing the expression of (certain desires) Compare repress
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Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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nonsuppressivenessnoun
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suppressernoun
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suppressornoun
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presuppressverb (used with object)
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resuppressverb (used with object)
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nonsuppressiveadjective
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self-suppressingadjective
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self-suppressiveadjective
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suppressibleadjective
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suppressiveadjective
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unsuppressibleadjective
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unsuppressiveadjective
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nonsuppressivelyadverb
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suppressivelyadverb
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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suppresssimple
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suppressessimple
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have suppressedperfect
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has suppressedperfect
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am suppressingprogressive
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are suppressingprogressive
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is suppressingprogressive
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have been suppressingperfect progressive
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has been suppressingperfect progressive
Past
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suppressedsimple
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had suppressedperfect
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was suppressingprogressive
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were suppressingprogressive
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had been suppressingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of suppress
First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English suppressen, from Latin suppressus (past participle of supprimere “to press down”), equivalent to sup- sup- + pressus ( see press 1)
Explanation
To suppress something means to curb, inhibit, or even stop it. If the sound of your boss moving in his chair sounds like gas, you’re going to have to learn how to suppress your giggles. In the strictest sense, suppress means to put an end to something by force, like a government that suppresses the right to free speech by shutting down the newspapers or the military suppressing an uprising by rebel forces. But we also use suppress in less serious terms to describe an attempt to muffle or stifle something, such as suppressing a sneeze in a quiet theater or suppressing your true emotions to not cause a teary scene.
Vocabulary lists containing suppress
The Giver
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Animal Farm
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The Maze Runner
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Fitch expects home-price growth to be “largely” flat this year, as mortgage rates stay high and suppress affordability for prospective home buyers.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 14, 2026
Rosales understands a gendered reality that our current society sweats to suppress.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 9, 2026
"Mohammad's team and the other defence teams will file motions to suppress some of these categories of evidence, as well."
From BBC ● Sep. 8, 2026
Many firms deliberately hold blue-sky sessions where participants are asked to voice ideas they would normally suppress fearing colleague ridicule.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 8, 2026
He saw Katherine trying to suppress a shiver.
From "Found" by Margaret Peterson Haddix
Warming suppresses upwelling — which normally allows colder, deeper and nutrient-rich ocean water to rise closer to the surface.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 10, 2026
This suppresses appetite and keeps people feeling fuller for longer, helping them to lose weight.
From BBC ● Aug. 8, 2026
Heat domes are large areas of high pressure, where sinking air suppresses development of precipitation and clouds, allowing heat to build up over days and weeks.
From Barron's ● Jul. 14, 2026
Borrowers who are highly qualified are often more likely to overpay because their lack of approval anxiety suppresses the motivation to comparison shop, according to the research.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 26, 2026
The clerk suppresses a look of horror before reaching for the tray on the very bottom rack.
From "The Brightwood Code" by Monica Hesse
U.S. stocks rose after comments from Federal Reserve Gov. Christopher Waller suppressed Treasury yields.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 3, 2026
Many wild places historically depended on fires to maintain their ecosystems, and as people have continued to build farther into those places, they have, with great success, suppressed those blazes, Frievalt said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 26, 2026
A single dose of the combination therapy suppressed tumor growth in mice much more effectively over one month than either treatment by itself.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 25, 2026
The loss of local manufacturing jobs helped suppressed demand in places like St. Louis.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 22, 2026
He felt the beginning of an awful anger, an unbearable sadness, suppressed it.
From "The Killer Angels: The Classic Novel of the Civil War" by Michael Shaara
When he began practicing urology in the 1980s, the common misunderstanding was that testosterone injections caused prostate cancer, further suppressing research and treatment of testosterone deficiency.
From Slate ● Sep. 13, 2026
By suppressing PCSK9, the treatment helps cells remove more cholesterol from the bloodstream, potentially reducing the buildup of fatty plaques inside arteries that can lead to atherosclerosis.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 10, 2026
U.S. stocks rose after comments from a Federal Reserve official took the sting out of rising oil prices by suppressing Treasury yields.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 3, 2026
Factors that put people at a higher risk of severe infection include being older than 60, diabetes, high blood pressure, chronic kidney disease and being on immune system suppressing medication.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 21, 2026
I press my lips together, suppressing a laugh.
From "Red Flags and Butterflies" by Sheryl Azzam
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
