1. (a.) Unreasonably burdensome; unjustly severe, rigorous, or harsh; as, oppressive taxes; oppressive exactions of service; an oppressive game law.

2. (a.) Using oppression; tyrannical; as, oppressive authority or commands.

3. (a.) Heavy; overpowering; hard to be borne; as, oppressive grief or woe.

Herculean absolute absolutist absolutistic agonizing airless annoying arbitrary arduous aristocratic arrogant authoritarian authoritative autocratic backbreaking besetting black bleak bossy bothersome breathless breezeless brutal burdensome close crushing cumbersome cumbrous demanding depressant depressing depressive despotic dictatorial discouraging disheartening dismal dispiriting distressing dolorous domineering down effortful encumbering exacting exhausting exigent feudal forced grievous grinding grueling hampering hard-earned hard-fought harrowing harsh heavy hefty high-handed humid ill-ventilated impedimental impeding impeditive imperative imperial imperious incumbent intolerable irksome killing labored laborious lordly lumpish magisterial magistral massive masterful miserable monocratic muggy onerous operose overbearing overburdensome overpowering overruling overwhelming painful peremptory plaguey punishing racking repressive severe somber sticky stifling strained strenuous strict stuffy suffocating sultry superincumbent suppressive taxing toilsome tough troublesome trying tyrannical tyrannous unbearable uncomfortable unendurable unvented unventilated unwieldy uphill vexatious wearing wearisome wearying weighty windless wretched