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reprimere

to repress

verb reh-PREE-meh-reh Rare
Mind & Emotions Mental States

Origin: Latin reprimere (to press back, check)

Also means

to suppress

Usage Note

Reprimere can be used both for suppressing emotions (reprimere la rabbia, to hold back anger) and for forcibly crushing a revolt or movement (reprimere una rivolta). It is an irregular verb of the second conjugation: past participle represso. Do not confuse with sopprimere (to abolish, to eliminate entirely).

Examples

"Cercava di reprimere la sua rabbia."

Natural Translation

He was trying to repress his anger.

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