Suppress, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Suppressed; p. pr. & vb. n. Suppressing.]
Etymology: [L. suppressus, p.p. of supprimere to suppress; sub under + premere, pressum, to press. See Sub-, and Press.]
1. To overpower and crush; to subdue; to put down; to quell. Every rebellion, when it is suppressed, doth make the subject weaker, and the prince stronger. Sir J. Davies.
2. To keep in; to restrain from utterance or vent; as, to suppress the voice; to suppress a smile. Sir W. Scott.
3. To retain without disclosure; to conceal; not to reveal; to prevent publication of; as, to suppress evidence; to suppress a pamphlet; to suppress the truth. She suppresses the name, and this keeps him in a pleasing suspense. Broome.
4. To stop; to restrain; to arrest the discharges of; as, to suppress a diarrhea, or a hemorrhage.
1 more senses
Syn. -- To repress; restrain; put down; overthrow; overpower; overwhelm; conceal; stifle; stop; smother.
Shades of meaning
Fernald has no entry of its own for suppress; he lists it under abolish, hide, restrain, subvert.
Where he writes about it:
We abate a nuisance, terminate a controversy, suppress a rebellion. — from abate
Overthrow may be used in either a good or a bad sense; suppress is commonly in a good, subvert always in a bad sense; as, to subvert our liberties; to suppress a rebellion. — from abolish
To repress, literally to press back, is to hold in check, and perhaps only temporarily, that which is still very active; it is a feebler word than restrain; to suppress is finally and effectually to put down; suppress is a much stronger word than restrain; as, to suppress a rebellion. — from restrain