clinical depression

noun

: a serious mood disorder involving one or more episodes of intense psychological depression or loss of interest or pleasure that lasts two or more weeks and is accompanied by irritability, fatigue, poor concentration, sleep disturbances, weight gain or loss, feelings of worthlessness or guilt, and sometimes suicidal tendencies : major depression, major depressive disorder

Mild depression is a normal condition, a sadness brought on by life's circumstances. Clinical depression, on the other hand, is a sadness so deep that it can lead to suicide if left untreated.

—Brenda Lane Richardson

Examples of clinical depression in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

For example, people with clinical depression tend to display fewer self-serving biases than those who are not. —Sherri Gordon, Health, 14 Sep. 2024

Atop that list are the unborn, children and teens, for whom marijuana can interfere with brain development, as well as individuals with mental health disorders, such as anxiety, clinical depression and schizophrenia; the symptoms of such conditions can worsen with use of the drug. —Joerg Leheste, Scientific American, 8 July 2024

His self-loathing became full-on clinical depression. —Jesse David Fox, Vulture, 16 Mar. 2024

Murder-suicides can stem from many reasons, including extreme stress, clinical depression, loss and more. —Shelby Slade, The Arizona Republic, 15 Jan. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1937, in the meaning defined above

Medical Definition

clinical depression

noun

: a serious mood disorder involving one or more episodes of intense psychological depression or loss of interest or pleasure that lasts two or more weeks and is accompanied by irritability, fatigue, poor concentration, sleep disturbances, weight gain or loss, feelings of worthlessness or guilt, and sometimes suicidal tendencies : major depression, major depressive disorder

Cases of clinical depression present doctors with a nasty diagnostic challenge: The malady, which strikes about 10% of the population, comes in myriad forms, each requiring different treatments.

—Science