depressant

[ dih-pres-uhnt ]

adjective

1. Medicine/Medical. having the quality of depressing depressing or lowering the vital activities; sedative.
2. causing a lowering in spirits; dejecting.
3. causing a drop in value; economically depressing. depressing.

noun

1. Medicine/Medical. a sedative. Compare stimulant ( def 1 ).
2. Chemistry. any agent capable of diminishing a specific property of a substance.

depressant

/ dɪˈprɛsənt /

adjective

1. med able to diminish or reduce nervous or functional activity
2. causing gloom or dejection; depressing

noun

1. a depressant drug

Word History and Origins

Origin of depressant¹

First recorded in 1875–80; depress + -ant

Example Sentences

Similar to previous non-hallucinogenic cousins, their molecules need a high dose to see anti-depressant effects.

From Singularity Hub 

There are certain points during a woman’s menstrual cycle where anti-depressants may be too low at their normal dose, and that at another point, they might be too high.

From Freakonomics

Street-drug users often combine fentanyl with methamphetamine, Zibbell said, believing that the stimulant and the depressant balance each other.

From Washington Post

A commercial for an anti-depressant to take when you feel “everything is meaningless” and works to “anchor you back to reality” corresponds to an episode where Wanda begins to realize the limit of her delusion.

From Time

Another side is when you’re on anti-depressants, the hookup physiology may not work.

From Washington Blade

In fact, the estrogen that they employed did worse than castrate the subject—it could act as a cerebral depressant.

From The Daily Beast

Some presenters claim that qat is like heroin, a depressant.

From The Daily Beast

Kotak has only just begun weaning herself off a cocktail of anti-psychotic, anti-depressant, and anti-anxiety medication.

From The Daily Beast

This is something that's the best anti-depressant, anti-anxiety drug I have ever been on.

From The Daily Beast

The disease is very severe, painful, and depressant, but the mortality is quite low except in complication with other maladies.

From Project Gutenberg

In large doses chloral hydrate is a depressant to the circulation and the respiration, and also lowers the temperature.

From Project Gutenberg

But the weakening and deteriorating effect of this pernicious narcotic, water-absorbing, depressant drug poison is unmistakable.

From Project Gutenberg

But, unfortunately, acetanilid is also the one with the most depressant action on the heart.

From Project Gutenberg

As a stimulant Capsicum has the power of neutralizing depressant remedies like Lobelia and Tobacco.

From Project Gutenberg