ANTIDEPRESSANT

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does antidepressant mean? 

• ANTIDEPRESSANT (noun)
  The noun ANTIDEPRESSANT has 1 sense:

1. any of a class of drugs used to treat depression; often have undesirable side effects

  Familiarity information: ANTIDEPRESSANT used as a noun is very rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• ANTIDEPRESSANT (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

Any of a class of drugs used to treat depression; often have undesirable side effects

Classified under:

Nouns denoting man-made objects

Synonyms:

antidepressant; antidepressant drug

Hypernyms ("antidepressant" is a kind of...):

medicament; medication; medicinal drug; medicine ((medicine) something that treats or prevents or alleviates the symptoms of disease)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "antidepressant"):

MAOI; monoamine oxidase inhibitor (any of a group of antidepressant drugs that inhibit the action of monoamine oxidase in the brain and so allow monoamines to accumulate)

nefazodone; Serzone (an antidepressant drug (trade name Serzone))

nontricyclic; nontricyclic antidepressant; nontricyclic antidepressant drug; nontricyclic drug (a class of antidepressant drugs that are not tricyclic drugs and do not act by inhibiting MAO)

Edronax; reboxetine (an antidepressant drug that blocks the reuptake of norepinephrine)

selective-serotonin reuptake inhibitor; SSRI (an antidepressant drug that acts by blocking the reuptake of serotonin so that more serotonin is available to act on receptors in the brain)

tricyclic; tricyclic antidepressant; tricyclic antidepressant drug (an antidepressant drug that acts by blocking the reuptake of norepinephrine and serotonin and thus making more of those substances available to act on receptors in the brain)

maleate (a salt or ester of maleic acid; used as a nontricyclic antidepressant drug for psychomotor activation)

 Context examples 

A tricyclic compound chemically related to tricyclic antidepressants (TCA) with anticonvulsant and analgesic properties.

(Carbamazepine, NCI Thesaurus)

The hydrochloride salt of an aminoketone antidepressant.

(Bupropion hydrochloride, NCI Thesaurus)

A centrally-acting neurokinin 1 (NK1) receptor antagonist with antidepressant and antiemetic activities.

(Casopitant, NCI Thesaurus)

The mesylate salt of a centrally-acting neurokinin 1 (NK1) receptor antagonist with antidepressant and antiemetic activities.

(Casopitant Mesylate, NCI Thesaurus)

A psychotropic agent similar to doxepin with potential antianxiety and antidepressant activities.

(Cidoxepin, NCI Thesaurus)

It belongs to the families of drugs called antidepressant agents and selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs).

(Celexa, NCI Dictionary)

It is a type of antidepressant and a type of nicotine receptor antagonist.

(Bupropion hydrochloride, NCI Dictionary)

The hydrobromide salt of an aminoketone with antidepressant activity.

(Bupropion Hydrobromide, NCI Thesaurus)

Antidepressants such as Prozac inhibit reuptake of serotonin and many drugs of abuse such as cocaine act by blocking reuptake of dopamine or adrenaline.

(Attenuation of GPCR Signaling Pathway, NCI Thesaurus/BIOCARTA)

This finding, the authors note, is consistent with a previous medication study showing that sertraline, a well-known antipanic and antidepressant drug, lowered orexin concentrations in cerebrospinal fluid.

(The Mechanism of Panic Attacks, NIH, US)