Oppress, o-pres′, v.t. to press against or upon: to use severely: to burden: to lie heavy upon: to constrain: to overpower: to treat unjustly: to load with heavy burdens.—n. Oppress′ion, act of oppressing or treating unjustly or harshly: severity: cruelty: state of being oppressed: misery: hardship: injustice: dullness of spirits: (Shak.) pressure.—adj. Oppress′ive, tending to oppress: overburdensome: treating with severity or injustice: heavy: overpowering: difficult to bear.—adv. Oppress′ively.—ns. Oppress′iveness; Oppress′or, one who oppresses. [Fr.,—L. opprimĕre, oppressum—ob, against, premĕre, to press.]
Opprobrious, o-prō′bri-us, adj. expressive of opprobrium or disgrace: reproachful: infamous: despised.—adv. Opprō′briously.—ns. Opprō′briousness; Opprō′brium, reproach expressing contempt or disdain: disgrace: infamy. [L.,—ob, against, probrum, reproach.]
Oppugn, o-pūn′, v.t. to fight against, esp. by argument: to oppose: to resist.—n. Oppugn′er. [Fr.,—L. oppugnāre, to fight against—ob, against, pugna, a fight.]
Oppugnancy, o-pug′nan-si, n. (Shak.) opposition, resistance.—adj. Oppug′nant, opposing: hostile.—n. an opponent. [L. oppugnans, -antis, pr.p. of oppugnāre.]
Opsimathy, op-sim′a-thi, n. learning obtained late in life. [Gr.,—opse, late, mathein, to learn.]
Opsiometer, op-si-om′e-tėr, n. an optometer.
Opsonium, op-sō′ni-um, n. anything eaten with bread as a relish, esp. fish.—ns. Opsomā′nia, any morbid love for some special kind of food; Opsomā′niac, one who manifests the foregoing. [Gr. opsōnion—opson, strictly boiled meat, any relish.]
Optative, op′ta-tiv, or op-tā′tiv, adj. expressing desire or wish.—n. (gram.) a mood of the verb expressing wish.—adv. Op′tatively. [L. optativus—optāre, -ātum, to wish.]
Optic, -al, op′tik, -al, adj. relating to sight, or to optics.—n. Op′tic (Pope), an organ of sight: an eye.—adv. Op′tically.—ns. Optic′ian, one skilled in optics: one who makes or sells optical instruments; Op′tics (sing.), the science of the nature and laws of vision and light; Optim′eter, Optom′eter, an instrument for measuring the refractive powers of the eye; Optom′etry, the measurement of the visual powers.—Optic axis, the axis of the eye—that is, a line going through the middle of the pupil and the centre of the eye. [Fr. optique—Gr. optikos.]
Optime, op′ti-mē, n. in the university of Cambridge, one of those in the second or third rank of honours (senior and junior optimes respectively), next to the wranglers.—n.pl. Optimā′tes, the Roman aristocracy. [L. optimus, best.]