depression

[ dih-presh-uhn ]

noun

1. the act of depressing.
2. the state of being depressed.
3. a depressed or sunken place or part; an area lower than the surrounding surface.
4. sadness; gloom; dejection.

   Synonyms: despondency, discouragement

5. Psychiatry. a condition of general emotional dejection and withdrawal; sadness greater and more prolonged than that warranted by any objective reason. Compare clinical depression.
6. dullness or inactivity, as of trade.
7. Economics. a period during which business, employment, and stock-market values decline severely or remain at a very low level of activity.
8. the Depression. Great Depression.
9. Pathology. a low state of vital powers or functional activity.
10. Astronomy. the angular distance of a celestial body below the horizon; negative altitude.
11. Surveying. angle of depression ( def ).
12. Physical Geography. an area completely or mostly surrounded by higher land, ordinarily having interior drainage and not conforming to the valley of a single stream.
13. Meteorology. an area of low atmospheric pressure.

Depression

¹

/ dɪˈprɛʃən /

noun

1. the Depression
   the worldwide economic depression of the early 1930s, when there was mass unemployment Also known asthe Great Depressionthe Slump

depression

²

/ dɪˈprɛʃən /

noun

1. the act of depressing or state of being depressed
2. a depressed or sunken place or area
3. a mental disorder characterized by extreme gloom, feelings of inadequacy, and inability to concentrate
4. pathol an abnormal lowering of the rate of any physiological activity or function, such as respiration
5. an economic condition characterized by substantial and protracted unemployment, low output and investment, etc; slump
6. Also calledcyclonelow meteorol a large body of rotating and rising air below normal atmospheric pressure, which often brings rain
7. (esp in surveying and astronomy) the angular distance of an object, celestial body, etc, below the horizontal plane through the point of observation Compare elevation

depression

/ dĭ-prĕsh′ən /

1. A geographic area, such as a sinkhole or basin, that is lower than its surroundings.
2. A mood disorder characterized by an inability to experience pleasure, difficulty in concentrating, disturbance of sleep and appetite, and feelings of sadness, guilt, and helplessness.
3. A reduction in the activity of a physiological process, such as respiration.
4. A region of low atmospheric pressure. Low pressure systems result in precipitation, ranging from mild to severe in intensity.
5. See also cyclone

depression

1. A period of drastic decline in the national economy, characterized by decreasing business activity, falling prices, and unemployment. The best known of such periods is the Great Depression , which occurred in the 1930s.

Other Words From

• anti·de·pression adjective noun
• mini·de·pression noun
• nonde·pression noun
• postde·pression adjective
• prede·pression noun adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of depression¹

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English (from Anglo-French ), from Medieval Latin dēpressiōn- (stem of dēpressiō ), Late Latin: “a pressing down,” equivalent to Latin dēpress(us) + -iōn- noun suffix; depress, -ion

Example Sentences

Depression is one of the most common mental illnesses.

From Science Daily

He grew up in the shadow of the Great Depression in the 1930s on the South Side of Chicago.

From BBC

Even Trump's biggest booster, billionaire Elon Musk, agrees that Trump's plans would tank the U.S. economy, causing what, by Musk's own admission, sounds like a second Great Depression.

From Salon

Not since the Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act of 1930, which by the consensus of historians and economists exacerbated the Great Depression, has a presidential aspirant proposed such high across-the-board tariffs on imports as Trump does.

From Los Angeles Times

The greatest economic meltdown since the Great Depression fed personal insecurity of a different sort.

From Salon