I. səˈpres transitive verb
( -ed/-ing/-es )
Etymology: Middle English suppressen, from Latin suppressus, past participle of supprimere to press under, suppress, from sub- + premere to press — more at press
1.
a. : to put down or out of existence by or as if by authority, force, or pressure : subdue
the incipient uprising had been completely suppressed — S.G.Inman
b. : to force into impotence or obscurity
c. : to extinguish by prohibiting, dissolving, or dispersing
empowered the governments to … suppress all opposition parties — C.E.Black & E.C.Helmreich
2. : to keep from public knowledge: as
a. : to refrain from divulging : leave undisclosed
a famous penal institution the name of which I prefer to suppress — Henry Miller
b. : to prohibit or interdict the publication or revelation of : cause to be withheld or withdrawn from circulation
foreign correspondent's copy is not censored, but certain news is suppressed — R.H.Sollen
union halls were closed, papers suppressed — Meridel Le Sueur
3.
a. : to exclude from consciousness
the satisfaction of a suppressed creative wish — T.S.Eliot
they ought when thus … suppressed to give some sign in disorder of the conscious life — Havelock Ellis
b. : to keep from giving vent to : hold back
it has been hard to suppress the question — Reporter
disciplined to suppress his personal impulses — Green Peyton
4. obsolete : to press down : compress
5. obsolete : rape
6.
a. : to stop or check the flow of : arrest the discharge of
suppress a cough
suppress a hemorrhage
b. : to inhibit the growth or development of : cause to become abortive or vestigial : stunt
growth of an apical bud usually suppresses that of adjacent lateral buds
Synonyms: see crush
II. transitive verb
: to inhibit the genetic expression of
suppress a mutation