lower

Compared meaning: to make something go down (verb).

比较义项：降低、减少（动词）。

• lower 本词

  General everyday verb for making something go down — voice, price, temperature, a flag; used in casual, concrete contexts.

  日常通用动词，表示使某物变低——如声音、价格、温度、旗帜；用于口语化、具体的语境。

  Could you lower your voice? People are trying to study.

  你能把声音放低一点吗？大家在学习呢。

• depress

  More formal; mainly used with economic or quantitative nouns like prices, wages or demand, not with concrete everyday objects like a voice; also often means to make someone sad, a separate sense not covered here.

  更为正式，主要用于经济或数量类名词，如价格、工资或需求，而不用于声音等具体日常事物；depress还常表示使人沮丧，这一义项本卡片不作比较。

  Weak consumer demand continued to depress prices throughout the recession.

  疲软的消费需求持续压低了整个衰退期间的价格。

Lower and depress both mean to make something go down. Lower is the everyday verb, used for voice, price, temperature, or a flag. Depress is more formal, used with economic words like prices, wages, or demand. Depress can mean to make someone sad, not compared.

这两个词在“降低、减少”这一意义上相近，但lower是日常通用词，可用于声音、价格、温度等各种具体或抽象事物；depress语气更正式，多用于经济或数量类语境（如价格、工资、需求），不用来说“压低声音”。这里不比较depress“使人沮丧”这一常见义项。