Source : Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)

Impress \Im*press"\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Impressed}; p. pr. &
   vb. n. {Impressing}.] [L. impressus, p. p. of imprimere to
   impress; pref. im- in, on + premere to press. See {Press} to
   squeeze, and cf. {Imprint}.]
   1. To press, stamp, or print something in or upon; to mark by
      pressure, or as by pressure; to imprint (that which bears
      the impression).

            His heart, like an agate, with your print impressed.
                                                  --Shak.

   2. To produce by pressure, as a mark, stamp, image, etc.; to
      imprint (a mark or figure upon something).

   3. Fig.: To fix deeply in the mind; to present forcibly to
      the attention, etc.; to imprint; to inculcate.

            Impress the motives of persuasion upon our own
            hearts till we feel the force of them. --I. Watts.

   4. [See {Imprest}, {Impress}, n., 5.] To take by force for
      public service; as, to impress sailors or money.

            The second five thousand pounds impressed for the
            service of the sick and wounded prisoners. --Evelyn.

Impress \Im*press"\, v. i.
   To be impressed; to rest. [Obs.]

         Such fiendly thoughts in his heart impress. --Chaucer.

Impress \Im"press\, n.; pl. {Impresses}.
   1. The act of impressing or making.

   2. A mark made by pressure; an indentation; imprint; the
      image or figure of anything, formed by pressure or as if
      by pressure; result produced by pressure or influence.

            The impresses of the insides of these shells.
                                                  --Woodward.

            This weak impress of love is as a figure Trenched in
            ice.                                  --Shak.

   3. Characteristic; mark of distinction; stamp. --South.

   4. A device. See {Impresa}. --Cussans.

            To describe . . . emblazoned shields, Impresses
            quaint.                               --Milton.

   5. [See {Imprest}, {Press} to force into service.] The act of
      impressing, or taking by force for the public service;
      compulsion to serve; also, that which is impressed.

            Why such impress of shipwrights?      --Shak.

   {Impress gang}, a party of men, with an officer, employed to
      impress seamen for ships of war; a press gang.

   {Impress money}, a sum of money paid, immediately upon their
      entering service, to men who have been impressed.

Source : WordNet®

impress
     n : the act of coercing someone into government service [syn: {impressment}]
     v 1: have an emotional or cognitive impact upon; "This child
          impressed me as unusually mature"; "This behavior struck
          me as odd" [syn: {affect}, {move}, {strike}]
     2: impress positively; "The young chess player impressed her
        audience"
     3: produce or try to produce a vivid impression of; "Mother
        tried to ingrain respect for our elders in us" [syn: {ingrain},
         {instill}]
     4: mark or stamp with or as if with pressure; "To make a batik,
        you impress a design with wax" [syn: {imprint}]
     5: reproduce by printing [syn: {print}]
     6: take (someone) against his will for compulsory service,
        especially on board a ship; "The men were shanghaied after
        being drugged" [syn: {shanghai}]
     7: dye (fabric) before it is spun [syn: {yarn-dye}]