depression
de·pres·sion/dɪˈpɹɛʃən/noun
depression is spelled D-E-P-R-E-S-S-I-O-N: 10 letters and 3 syllables (de·pres·sion). It appears 36 times per million words in written English, the 2,669th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). People search “depression vs recession” about 3,600 times a month (Google, United States). As a noun, depression means “A state of mind producing serious, long-term lowering of enjoyment of life or inability to visualize a happy future; any of several mental disorders…” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of depression is depressions.
How many letters and syllables are in depression?
| Letters | 10: D-E-P-R-E-S-S-I-O-N |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3: de·pres·sion |
| In writing | 36 times per million words; the 2,669th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Pairs people search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); Bing searches in the United States: the average month from September 2025 to August 2026 (Microsoft Advertising keyword data through DataForSEO, read September 30, 2026).
How common is depression?
Depression appears 36 times per million words in written English, the 2,669th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce depression?
- /dɪˈpɹɛʃən/
- [dɪˈpʰɹʷɛʃən] ~ [dɪˈpʰɹʷɛʃn̩]
- /dəˈpɹɛʃən/
Depression has 3 syllables, split de·pres·sion in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-depression.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Words people confuse with depression
Word pairs people search, with the monthly searches for “a vs b” (G: Google, B: Bing, United States).
Sources: Google and Bing searches (September 2025 to August 2026, through DataForSEO); English Wiktionary (homophones, alternative spellings).
Forms of depression
- depressions plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does depression mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
A state of mind producing serious, long-term lowering of enjoyment of life or inability to visualize a happy future; any of several mental disorders with this state of mind as a central feature.
I used to suffer from depression, but now I'm mostly content with my life.
- 2
A period of low morale or unhappiness (a period of experiencing the above-mentioned state of mind) which lasts longer than several weeks and may include ideation of self-inflicted injury or suicide.
- 3
An area that is lower in topography than its surroundings.
- 4
An area of lowered air pressure that generally brings moist weather, sometimes promoting hurricanes and tornadoes.
- 5
A period of major economic contraction.
- 6
Four consecutive quarters of negative, real GDP growth (for example, this operational definition is used by the US NBER and many other writers).
The Great Depression was the worst financial event in US history.
- 7
The act of lowering or pressing something down.
Depression of the lever starts the machine.
- 8
A lowering, in particular a reduction in a particular biological variable or the function of an organ, in contrast to elevation.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
How do you abbreviate depression?
Wiktionary records one abbreviation of depression: depr.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Depression in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | dépression |
| German | Depression , Senke , Abschwung |
| Portuguese | depressão , crise , área de baixa pressão |
| Spanish | depresión , hondonada, hondón , área de baja presión |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does depression come from?
From Middle English depression, depressioun, from Old French depression, from Latin dēpressiō. Equivalent to depress + -ion.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).