depressant
depressant — noun
- depressantsingular
- depressantsplural
1. a substance that slows down the messages sent between your brain and body, makin
a substance that slows down the messages sent between your brain and body, making you feel more relaxed, less anxious, or sleepy, and lowering your breathing rate and heart rate
When her panic attacks grew worse, the doctor gave Rania a mild depressant for bedtime.
depressant prescribed for anxiety-related sleep issues
The nurse told Luca that alcohol is a depressant, despite the initial lively feeling.
alcohol classified as a common depressant
Xiu read the side effects on the depressant bottle and saw it could cause drowsiness.
Mixing sleeping pills and painkillers, both depressants, sent Adisa to hospital with slow breathing.
- sedative
a type of depressant specifically used to promote calmness or sleep; 'sedative' sounds more clinical and is usually a prescribed medication
- tranquilizer
a depressant that mainly reduces anxiety without causing heavy sleep; 'tranquilizer' is often used for stronger prescription drugs
- stimulant
a substance that speeds up the body, like caffeine, nicotine, or amphetamines
用法筆記
Depressant is the broad medical term for any substance that slows central nervous system activity. It includes alcohol, benzodiazepines, barbiturates, and sleep aids. Do not confuse with 'antidepressant' (a drug that treats depression by raising mood). Antidepressants are not depressants — they belong to a different drug class.
常見錯誤
depressant — adjective
- depressantpositive
- more depressantcomparative
- most depressantsuperlative
1. describes a substance or effect that reduces the activity of the body's systems
describes a substance or effect that reduces the activity of the body's systems — especially the brain, nerves, heart, and lungs — by slowing the signals they send and receive
The drug's depressant properties can cause extreme drowsiness, so patients should avoid driving.
depressant + properties (attributive) — modified-noun subject
The leaflet warned that the depressant properties of the medication could make driving very dangerous.
depressant + properties
Yuki learned that alcohol has a depressant effect on the nervous system, not a stimulating one.
A doctor may give a patient depressant medication to slow a dangerously fast heart rate.
- stimulating
increasing rather than reducing body activity
用法筆記
Used attributively (before a noun) in formal or clinical writing: depressant effect, depressant action, depressant properties. The adjective is rarer in everyday speech; speakers usually say 'it has a calming/sleep-inducing effect' instead.