depression Hear it!

depression Definition

de·pres·sion (dē pres̸h′ən, di-)

noun

  1. a depressing or being depressed
  2. a depressed part or place; hollow or low place on a surface
  3. low spirits; gloominess; dejection; sadness
  4. a decrease in force, activity, amount, etc.
  5. Astron. the angular distance of a celestial body below the horizon
  6. ☆ Econ. a period marked by slackening of business activity, widespread unemployment, falling prices and wages, etc.
  7. Med. a decrease in functional activity
  8. Meteorol.
    1. a lowering of the atmospheric pressure indicated by the fall of mercury in a barometer
    2. an area of relatively low barometric pressure; low
  9. Psychol. an emotional condition, either neurotic or psychotic, characterized by feelings of hopelessness, inadequacy, etc.
  10. Surveying the angular distance of an object below the horizontal plane

Etymology: ME depressioun < OFr depression < L depressio: see depress

depression Idioms

the (Great) Depression

the period of economic depression which began in 1929 and lasted through most of the 1930s

depression Synonyms

depression

n.

  1. Something lower than its surroundings

    cavity, dip, sink; see dent, hole 2.

  2. Low spirits

    despair, despondency, sadness, sorrow, unhappiness, gloom, dejection, melancholy, misery, wretchedness, trouble, mortification, worry, discouragement, dispiritedness, hopelessness, pessimism, distress, desperation, desolation, dreariness, heaviness of spirit, dullness, disconsolation, downheartedness, woefulness, lugubriousness, moroseness, cheerlessness, disconsolateness, melancholia, dolor, dolefulness, darkness, bleakness, oppression, low-spiritedness, lowness, gloominess, glumness, disheartenment, hypochondria, vapors, malaise, clinical depression, dysthymia, slough of despond, Weltschmerz (German), doldrums, dumps*, mulligrubs*, blues*, blue devils*, horrors*, blue funk*, blahs*; see also gloom 2, grief 1, sadness.

    Antonyms joy*, elation*, satisfaction. *

  3. Period of commercial stress

    economic decline, recession, slump, economic downturn, unemployment, slack times, hard times, bad times, inflation, crisis, overproduction, retrenchment, slowdown, economic dislocation, economic paralysis, economic stagnation, financial storm, business inactivity, panic, crash*, bust*, Black Friday*, stagflation*; see also bankruptcy.

    Antonyms prosperity*, good times, boom.

depression Finance Definition

An economic situation that is characterized by decreased business activity, high unemployment, and falling prices. Depressions are relatively infrequent occurrences in the United States. The most famous depression is the Great Depression that began with the collapse of the U.S. stock market in 1929 and continued until 1942, when production activity picked up to meet the demand for goods during World War II.

depression Usage Examples

Converse of object

  • relieve: Citadep appears to relieve depression by increasing serotonin levels in the brain.
  • treat: The report asserts that research carried out into other ways of treating depression may well fail to reach GPs.
  • inbreed: Publications: Boakes, E. and Wang, J. ( 2005 ) A simulation study on detecting purging in inbreeding depression in captive populations.
  • suffer: I bet someone who has suffered severe depression can tell you The thing is, you have to work it out for yourself.
  • overcome: Earlier in the Depression Learning Path, we talked about the importance of tolerating uncertainty when looking to overcome depression.
  • worsen: Occasionally they can actually worsen depression in what is known as a paradoxical adverse effect.

Preposition: on

substrate: Around bog pools there may sometimes be patches of 7150 Depressions on peat substrates of the Rhynchosporion.

Adjective modifier

  • postnatal: Mothers with postnatal depression are in just such a position.
  • manic: The Fellowship works to enable people affected by manic depression to take control of their lives.
  • post-natal: But, said Dr. Wang: ' Women with post-natal depression still know right from wrong.
  • natal: A woman in my village committed suicide because of post natal depression.
  • respiratory: Precautions All patients who have been given morphine must be carefully observed for evidence of respiratory depression.
  • severe: The Novice was admitted to Hospital for two nights, suffering from severe depression.

Modifies a noun

spiral: But alcohol and drugs can be very useful accomplices for depression, with their physiologically depressant effects giving a boost to the depression spiral.

Noun used with modifier

  • marrow: The effect of the route of administration of the micronuclei and bone marrow depression in mouse bone marrow cells.
  • childhood: Rates of childhood depression, suicide and school criminality have soared since the 1920's.

Preposition: in

  • 1930s: It has also been claimed that his policies were also partly responsible for prolonging the economic depression in the 1930s.
  • adulthood: The women also gave information about whether they had suffered from depression in adulthood.

Preposition: of

  • 1930s: Not since the depression of the 1930s had things been so bad.
  • 1920s: The Great Depression of the 1920s and 30s renewed fears of social uprising, especially in America and Germany.