press down

verb

"press-down" is a 9-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“press down” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as a verb. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

Unranked
below top-frequency English
10
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see press, down.

Corpus desk

Index EN-press-down · press down · English

press down · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
  • LEN-MEGA 10 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-THIN "P" thin
  • PHOTO-UNK Peer pending

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.

Key facts for press down
PropertyValue
Headwordpress down
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
Letters10
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “press down” in English

press downsits beyond the 100,000 most-frequent English words, in the long tail of technical, archaic, or otherwise rare vocabulary where spelling doubt tends to strike hardest.

Beyond rank #100,000. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

press down is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as averb. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 3 senses are on record.

No misspelling variants are generated for press down in our index, a sign its spelling follows regular English conventions. It is not paired with a close-neighbour confusable in our dataset, since nothing in our dataset looks or sounds close enough to cause mix-ups.

No documented word history exists for this headword, so its spelling is easiest explained by how it's pronounced rather than where it came from. The correct English form is press down, spelled P-R-E-S-S- -D-O-W-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see press, down.
  2. 2
    To exert an oppressive influence.
  3. 3
    To press or push, especially for a long time.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Giue, and it shall bee giuen vnto you, good measure, preassed downe, and shaken together, and running ouer, shall men giue into your bosome: for with the same measure that ye mete withall, it shall bee measured to you againe.
  2. You shall not press down upon the brow of labor this crown of thorns, you shall not crucify mankind upon a cross of gold.

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "press down"?
"press down" is spelled P-R-E-S-S- -D-O-W-N.
What does "press down" mean?
As a verb, "press down" means: Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see press, down.
What language does "press down" come from?
"press down" is a English word. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data for this and other words across English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German on PlainSpell.
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.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list