depress

/dɪˈpɹɛs/

//dɪˈpɹɛs// verb

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

"depress" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“depress” has 9 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #34,464. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#34,464
frequency rank, English
3,470
“D” headwords
9
tracked misspellings
7
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - To press down.

Corpus desk

Index EN-depress · depress · English

depress · rank #34,464 · 9 variants · 7 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #34,464
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 7 pairs
  • VAR-MID 9 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,470
  • PHOTO-FINISH depravity

Nearest frequency peer: depravity (-1 rank slots)

Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Rank peers near misspelling magnet “depress”

Same rarity band: useful when a typo lands on a peer headword

corpus weight

What this shows “depress” sits among these FrequencyWords peers; misspelling depth is tracked separately in the edit-distance chart.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

depress vs dress
71% similar
depress vs duress
71% similar
depress vs digress
71% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for depress
PropertyValue
Headworddepress
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/dɪˈpɹɛs/
Letters7
Frequency rank#34,464
Misspellings tracked9
Confusable pairs7
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “depress”

This scale runs from the tiny cluster of words that carry ordinary speech (left) to the long tail of words almost nobody reaches for (right).depresslands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Ticks step logarithmically, so each one marks a roughly tenfold drop in how often the word turns up. Same rarity band neighbours include “depravity” (#34,463), “disheartening” (#34,465), “defamatory” (#34,462). Among 3,470 “D” headwords, “depress” is #34,464. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 9 spelling variants around depress (IPA /dɪˈpɹɛs/), averb. Corpus frequency is #34,464 among 3,470 “D” headwords. Wiktionary lists 5 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 9 likely wrong-spelling variants for depress, with forms such as "ddepress", "deperss", and "deppress". Each variant is a distinct typo pattern an edit-distance generator flags, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution. It also participates in 7 confusable-pair relationships, "dress", "duress", "digress", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English depressen, from Old French depresser, from Latin dēpressus, perfect participle of dēprimō (“to press down, to weigh down”), from dē- (“off, away, down, out”) + premō (“to press”). The correct English form is depress, spelled D-E-P-R-E-S-S.

Definition

  1. 1
    To press down.
  2. 2
    To make depressed, sad or bored.
  3. 3
    To cause a depression or a decrease in parts of the economy.
  4. 4
    To bring down or humble; to abase (pride, etc.).
  5. 5
    To reduce (an equation) in a lower degree.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how depress appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. Depress the upper lever to start the machine.
  2. As to the fireman, the sight of him at work, swinging round with his shovelful of coal and at the same moment lightly depressing his right heel and so working the pedal which causes the steam-operated firedoors to open like magic in front of the shovel, was always a pleasure.

Etymology

From Middle English depressen, from Old French depresser, from Latin dēpressus, perfect participle of dēprimō (“to press down, to weigh down”), from dē- (“off, away, down, out”) + premō (“to press”).

This word in other languages

deprimir(Español)appuyer(Français)deprimieren(Deutsch)pressionar(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • ddepress
  • deperss
  • deppress
  • depres
  • deprress
  • deprses
  • derpess
  • dperess
  • edpress

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of depress - counted as single-character edits (an insertion, a deletion, or a substituted letter). The larger the bar, the easier the typo is to spot; one-edit slips are the ones that sneak past readers.

ddepress1deperss2deppress1depres1deprress1deprses2derpess2dperess2
Edit distance from "depress"

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "depress"?
"depress" is spelled D-E-P-R-E-S-S. The IPA pronunciation is /dɪˈpɹɛs/.
What does "depress" mean?
As a verb, "depress" means: To press down.
What words are commonly confused with "depress"?
"depress" is commonly confused with "dress", "duress", "digress". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "depress"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "depress" is /dɪˈpɹɛs/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "depress"?
From Middle English depressen, from Old French depresser, from Latin dēpressus, perfect participle of dēprimō (“to press down, to weigh down”), from dē- (“off, away, down, out”) + premō (“to press”). See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Similar English words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "depress", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 7 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

decider#34,460DeAndre#34,457Ferrara#34,487fintech#34,491

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (9 here; floor ≥5).

Coptic9 variantscometh9 variantsfreebie9 variantsclawed9 variants

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list