Op*press" (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Oppressed (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Oppressing.] [F. oppresser, LL. oppressare, fr. L. oppressus, p. p. of opprimere; ob (see Ob-) + premere to press. See Press.]
1.
To impose excessive burdens upon; to overload; hence, to treat with unjust rigor or with cruelty.
Wyclif.
For thee, oppressed king, am I cast down.
Shak.
Behold the kings of the earth; how they oppress
Thy chosen !
Milton.
2.
To ravish; to violate.
[Obs.]
Chaucer.
3.
To put down; to crush out; to suppress.
[Obs.]
The mutiny he there hastes to oppress.
Shak.
4.
To produce a sensation of weight in (some part of the body); as, my lungs are oppressed by the damp air; excess of food oppresses the stomach
.
© Webster 1913.