oppression
/əˈpɹɛʃən/ noun
Forms oppressions
- noun The exercise of authority or power in a burdensome, cruel, or unjust manner.
- noun The act of oppressing, or the state of being oppressed. “Extreme freedom is followed by extreme oppression, said Plato.”
- noun A feeling of being oppressed. Special usage may include a sense of heaviness or obstruction in the body or mind; depression; dullness; lassitude. “Our oppression was lifted by the reappearance of the sun.”
Synonyms
Etymology
From Middle English oppression, from Old French oppression, from Latin oppressiō (“a pressing down, violence, oppression”), from opprimō; see oppress.
Webster’s 1913
- noun The act of oppressing, or state of being oppressed.
- noun That which oppresses; a hardship or injustice; cruelty; severity; tyranny. "The multitude of oppressions." Job xxxv. 9.
Etymology [F., fr. L. oppressio.]
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “oppression”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details