/ ɪmˈpres; NAmE / verb
1.
impress sb (with sth/sb) if a person or thing impresses you, you feel admiration for them or it :
[ vn ]
We interviewed a number of candidates but none of them impressed us.
He impressed her with his sincerity.
His sincerity impressed her.
[ v ]
The Grand Canyon never fails to impress.
[ vn that ]
It impressed me that she remembered my name.
—see also impressed , impressive
2.
[ vn ] impress sth on / upon sb ( formal ) to make sb understand how important, serious etc. sth is by emphasizing it :
He impressed on us the need for immediate action.
3.
[ vn ] impress sth / itself on / upon sth ( formal ) to have a great effect on sth, especially sb's mind, imagination, etc. :
Her words impressed themselves on my memory.
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WORD ORIGIN
late Middle English (in the sense apply with pressure ): from Old French empresser , from em- in + presser to press, influenced by Latin imprimere , from in- into + premere to press. Sense 1 dates from the mid 18th cent.