Op-prĕs'sion, n.

(-prĕsh'un), n. [Lat. oppressio, Fr. oppression, Pr. oppressio, Sp. opresion, It. oppressione. See supra.]

1. The act of oppressing; the imposition of unreasonable burdens, sufferings, labors, or sacrifices; cruelty; severity.
2. The state of being oppressed or overburdened; misery.
3. That which oppresses; hardship; injustice; cruelty; severity. Addison.
4. A sense of heaviness, weight, or obstruction in the body or mind; depression; dullness; lassitude.

There gentle Sleep First found me, and with soft oppression seized My drowned sense. Milton.