All 3 Uses
oppress
in
I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings
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- No one would have admitted that the Christian and charitable people were happy to think of their oppressors' turning forever on the Devil's spit over the flames of fire and brimstone.†
p. 131.7 *
- But on that onerous day, oppressed beyond relief, my own mortality was borne in upon me on sluggish tides of doom.†
p. 160.7
- A person unaware of all the factors that make up oppression might have expected sympathy or even support from the Negro newcomers for the dislodged Japanese.†
p. 209.9
Definitions:
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(1)
(oppress as in: oppressive government) to dominate harshly and unfairly; or to make sufferThe meaning of oppress depends upon its context. For example:
- "The authorities oppress political activists," or "The new nation oppressed Native Americans." -- to dominate harshly and unfairly
- "She is oppressed by excessive debt." - made to suffer
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(2)
(oppress as in: oppressive heat) to make uncomfortable (weigh heavily on the senses or spirit)
- (3) (meaning too rare to warrant focus)