1 depressive | Definition of depressive

depressive

adjective
de·​pres·​sive | \ di-ˈpre-siv How to pronounce depressive (audio) , dÄ“-\

Definition of depressive

 (Entry 1 of 2)

1 : tending to depress
2 : of, relating to, marked by, or affected by psychological depression depressive symptoms a depressive patient

depressive

noun

Definition of depressive (Entry 2 of 2)

: one who is affected with or prone to psychological depression

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Other Words from depressive

Adjective

depressively adverb

Examples of depressive in a Sentence

Adjective

the depressive air of a dingy barroom where locals went to drown their sorrows

Recent Examples on the Web: Adjective

Last winter's depressive episode marred what is usually a therapeutic exercise for Cobb. Wired, "These Hallucinatory Landscape Photographs Will Blow Your Mind," 1 Sep. 2019 When a white unarmed man is killed in a state, there’s no similar increase in depressive symptoms among white residents. P.r. Lockhart, Vox, "Why police violence needs to be treated as a public health issue," 14 Aug. 2019 Just last month, research out of Canada showed that higher levels of social media use was linked with increased depressive symptoms in adolescents. Leah Asmelash, CNN, "Social media use may harm teens' mental health by disrupting positive activities, study says," 13 Aug. 2019 For some moms, these symptoms are not a temporary phase and turn into a serious depressive episode – called postpartum depression. Madelyn Fernstrom, NBC News, "Everything you need to know about Zulresso — the first FDA-approved treatment for postpartum depression," 14 Aug. 2019 After that, Toby spirals into a depressive state and, at one point, breaks down crying in the couple's kitchen. Kayla Keegan, Good Housekeeping, "Chris Sullivan Reveals How Toby’s Depression Took a Toll on Him," 19 Mar. 2019 As part of the same survey, they were asked to measure their level of depressive symptoms, such as loneliness and sadness. Chris Morris, Fortune, "Teens Who Spend More Time on Social Media Have Increased Depression: Study," 15 July 2019 The institute reports that 31.9% suffer from an anxiety disorder, while 2.3 million adolescents aged 12 to 17 had at least one major depressive episode in 2017. Rachel Desantis, PEOPLE.com, "Florida Will Become the Third State to Require Schools to Teach Students About Mental Health," 19 July 2019 He was arrested at his nursing job, accused of stealing medication, leading to a depressive episode that left him isolated. Michael Williams, orlandosentinel.com, "Obsession, money, lies tore Grant Amato’s family apart. A jury will decide whether he killed them," 12 July 2019

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun

The Elvis, the Jesus, the Galileo of this monument was a fella named George Ellery Hale, a brilliant manic-depressive who built this dome and two telescopes, then invited the world – including Albert Einstein and Edwin Hubble — to come up to play. Chris Erskinecolumnist, Los Angeles Times, "Postcard From L.A.: In the moon glow of Mt. Wilson, go find your place in the cosmos," 15 July 2019 Robin Weigert plays Verena Baptist, a charismatic leader in ivory cashmere, who reveals to Plum that her mother, the successful inventor of a famously restrictive diet course, was a depressive who knew her own plan was sadistic and unsustainable. Rachel Syme, The New Republic, "On AMC, ‘Dietland’ serves up a revenge fantasy for the era of MeToo.," 12 June 2018 And the same factors that turned many smug Democrats into depressives in November have elated many Republicans. Daniel Gross, Slate Magazine, "Why Are Businesses Still So Giddy About Donald Trump?," 31 Mar. 2017 For the cool depressives, the irony of the vibrant, cheerful colors juxtaposed with a bored stare works best. Fiona Wallice, Harper's BAZAAR, "Fashion Therapy," 15 Feb. 2011 Let’s get rid of Infirmary Feminism, with its bedlam of bellyachers, anorexics, bulimics, depressives, rape victims and incest survivors. Dwight Garner, New York Times, "From Camille Paglia, ‘Free Women, Free Men’ and No Sacred Cows," 23 Mar. 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'depressive.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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First Known Use of depressive

Adjective

1620, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun

1937, in the meaning defined above

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More Definitions for depressive

depressive

adjective

English Language Learners Definition of depressive

medical : of or relating to the medical condition of depression