oppress

Synonym Chooser

How does the verb oppress differ from other similar words?

Some common synonyms of oppress are aggrieve, persecute, and wrong. While all these words mean "to injure unjustly or outrageously," oppress suggests inhumane imposing of burdens one cannot endure or exacting more than one can perform.

a people oppressed by a warmongering tyrant

When could aggrieve be used to replace oppress?

In some situations, the words aggrieve and oppress are roughly equivalent. However, aggrieve implies suffering caused by an infringement or denial of rights.

a legal aid society representing aggrieved minority groups

When might persecute be a better fit than oppress?

Although the words persecute and oppress have much in common, persecute implies a relentless and unremitting subjection to annoyance or suffering.

a child persecuted by constant criticism

When is it sensible to use wrong instead of oppress?

While the synonyms wrong and oppress are close in meaning, wrong implies inflicting injury either unmerited or out of proportion to what one deserves.

a penal system that had wronged him

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of oppress The idea of exploiting the Palestinian cause to oppress the Syrian people has been rejected. Efrat Lachter, FOXNews.com, 1 June 2025 No longer oppressed by external authority, we are instead crushed by the weight of limitless possibility. Tomas Chamorro-Premuzic, Forbes.com, 29 May 2025 My party defends those oppressed and exploited by capital; working farmers and undocumented immigrant workers who need amnesty. Harrison Mantas, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 20 Apr. 2025 We’ve often been lectured by people all over the place about how the United States needs to continue to be a beacon for those who are oppressed abroad. Asher Notheis, The Washington Examiner, 18 May 2025 See All Example Sentences for oppress
Recent Examples of Synonyms for oppress
Verb
  • Tax hikes at a time when individuals and businesses are expecting tax stability would undoubtedly depress investment, employment and overall economic confidence.
    Veronique De Rugy, Oc Register, 12 June 2025
  • This suggests Starlink has successfully overcome congestion issues in the US, which were previously depressing the broadband quality.
    Michael Kan, PC Magazine, 12 June 2025
Verb
  • For example, colorful hardware in a small kitchen with a lot of cabinets can overwhelm the space with visual clutter rather than color.
    Kristina McGuirk, Better Homes & Gardens, 7 June 2025
  • Almost immediately, the new facility was overwhelmed: Between the year of its founding and 1887, 44 percent of the women admitted into San Clemente were pellagrous.
    Asia London Palomba, Smithsonian Magazine, 6 June 2025
Verb
  • Now, a state agency is proposing a rule change that could significantly increase costs for homeowners and renters in our region, potentially burdening them with thousands of dollars in additional expenses.
    Rosilicie Ochoa Bogh, Oc Register, 30 May 2025
  • Those other tariff strategies, which CNN's report discussed at length, would take longer to implement and may not burden trade partners for as long as Trump may like but would essentially raise the same burdens without running afoul of courts, experts told CNN.
    Ashley Belanger – May 29, ArsTechnica, 29 May 2025
Verb
  • Chimney Rock State Park is set to reopen exactly nine months after being devastated by Hurricane Helene.
    Meghan Overdeep, Southern Living, 6 June 2025
  • The group warns that the ban on hemp products with THC would devastate legal businesses and drive demand toward the unregulated black market.
    Dario Sabaghi, Forbes.com, 6 June 2025
Verb
  • There are Holocaust survivors, there are children who were taken, there are people being starved and tortured and raped who have no access to the Red Cross.
    Andrew Goldman, Vulture, 16 June 2025
  • Owens wrote that his client didn’t seek out a criminal lifestyle but became indebted to a criminal organization that paid his ransom after he was kidnapped and tortured.
    City News Service, San Diego Union-Tribune, 13 June 2025
Verb
  • But your brain might still seek patterns to overcome.
    Mark Travers, Forbes.com, 10 June 2025
  • Yet soon one is overcome by Charles Laughton’s creepy, convincing portrayal of Captain Bligh’s sadomasochism: most of the first fifteen minutes is taken up with floggings and other shipboard disciplining of half-naked men, shown in detail while Laughton looks on with long-lipped lasciviousness.
    Adam Gopnik, New Yorker, 9 June 2025
Verb
  • We are saddened by the passing of Chef Herbert Coleman, a dear partner of the Miami Dolphins and a pillar in the South Florida community.
    Michael Butler, Miami Herald, 7 June 2025
  • Clowers, 26, is a trans woman from Missouri who says she’s always saddened when a trans youth commits suicide.
    CT Jones, Rolling Stone, 31 May 2025
Verb
  • Giuseppe Sette, president and co-founder at Reflexivity, is troubled by some of the forces the market appears to be overlooking.
    Sarah Min, CNBC, 6 June 2025
  • She was troubled by this, saying Burnett wasn’t involved with a previous daughter.
    Meredith Colias-Pete, Chicago Tribune, 6 June 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Oppress.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/oppress. Accessed 20 Jun. 2025.

More from Merriam-Webster on oppress

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