antidepressant
Meaning
a drug or other treatment used to alleviate depression.
used to alleviate depression.
Structure
Usage
her doctor prescribed a common antidepressant to help manage her symptoms.
the study compared the efficacy of the new antidepressant with a placebo.
he experienced fewer side effects after switching to a different antidepressant medication.
Etymology
the word is a modern scientific compound, built from classical elements to describe a function. the prefix 'anti-', of greek origin, carries its core meaning of opposition or remedy against something. it is attached to the verb 'depress', from latin deprimere ('de-' down + 'premere' to press), which metaphorically came to describe low spirits or melancholy. the suffix '-ant', also from latin, forms nouns denoting an agent or substance that performs an action. thus, the literal construction 'that which works against (the state of) being pressed down' logically evolved into the modern term for a substance that counteracts clinical depression.
Analysis
anti- (from greek, meaning 'against'); depress (from latin deprimere, 'to press down'); -ant (from latin -ant-, a suffix forming adjectives and agent nouns).