WordGarden.iodepressive
C2Pronunciation
UK
- /dɪprˈɛsɪv/
US
- /dɪˈprɛsɪv/
Meanings
Adjective
relating to depression as a mental-health condition or symptom
gloomy or likely to make someone feel sad and discouraged
Beyond the definition
"Depressive" describes a lasting, heavy sadness—often mixed with hopelessness and low energy. It's more than feeling "down" for a day or two; it's a low mood that can get in the way of normal life. Think of a thick gray sky that doesn't clear; that's close to the emotional weight people mean.
The word is most often used as an adjective for a mood, a period, or a person's tendency. For instance, you might say, "The news plunged her into a depressive state," or note that someone has depressive symptoms. It is closely connected to "depression," a recognized medical condition. People sometimes use it casually ("This rainy week feels depressive"), but a clinical depressive episode is far more serious than ordinary sadness.
"Depressive" points to a low, heavy mood that lasts, not just a brief dip. It can describe how someone feels (sad, hopeless, drained), and it often goes with signs like tiredness, trouble focusing, changes in sleep or appetite, and losing interest in things that used to feel good. When a mood or period is described this way, the idea is that it affects day-to-day life.
In everyday talk, it can also describe things that bring people down: a depressive news cycle, a depressive atmosphere in a film, or a stretch of gloomy weather. In this use it overlaps with "depressing," though "depressive" can sound more clinical or more about an ongoing state.
In mental health writing, the word connects directly to depression. You'll see phrases like depressive symptoms, depressive episode, and depressive disorder. Used about a person ("a depressive temperament" or "a depressive tendency"), it suggests they often slip into that low mood. Because the word can point to a real health condition, it's best used with care and without turning it into a label.
There is also a technical sense of "lowering" or "slowing." Economists may talk about depressive forces on growth, and medical writing may mention a drug's depressive effect on breathing or the nervous system. Across all these contexts, the core idea stays the same: something that pulls mood, activity, or energy downward.
Examples
- 1
Medical symptoms
She went to a clinic after several weeks of depressive symptoms.
- 2
Triggering event
Losing his job seemed to trigger a depressive episode.
- 3
Mood change
During the winter, he sometimes slips into a depressive mood.
- Patternslip into + state
gradually begin to be in that state
- 4
Therapy
The therapist asked whether she was having depressive thoughts again.
More examplesFewer examples
- 5
Diagnosis
He was later diagnosed with a depressive disorder and started treatment.
See also
Similar
- depressed
- melancholic
- low-spirited
Shades of meaning
Contrast
- cheerful
- euthymic
Used with (collocations)
- depressive symptoms
- depressive disorder
- major depressive disorder
- depressive episode
Word family
- depression
- depressively
Explore
- mood disorder
- anhedonia
Forms and spellings
2 forms open this card.
Main spelling
- depressivenounadjective
Forms
- depressivespluralnounadjective