re·press
(rĭ-prĕś)
[Middle English repressen, from Latin reprimere, repress-, re-, re-, + premere, to press.]
verb: -pressed, -press·ing, -press·es.
transitive verb
- To hold back by an act of volition: couldn't repress a smirk.
- To put down by force, usually before total control has been lost; quell: repress a rebellion.
- Psychology To exclude (painful or disturbing memories, for example) automatically or unconsciously from the conscious mind.
- Biology To block (transcription of a gene) by combination of a protein to an operator gene.
intransitive verb
- To take repressive action.
derivatives
- re·presśi·biĺi·ty
- noun
- re·presśi·ble
- adjective