Participants were 548 of the 4,023 youth from the National Survey of Adolescents. A multistage, stratified, random-digit dialing procedure was used to achieve a representative sample of adolescents based on U.S. Bureau of the Census estimates of the 1995 adolescent population. All participants included in the subsample for the current study met the DSM-I Criteria A for major depressive episode in the past year, as indicated by youth self-reports of symptoms during the phone interview. Questions about abuse were structured in a behaviorally specific manner to ensure that any abuse was defined by specific types of actions. Types of abuse were categorized as sexual abuse only, physical abuse only, sexual and physical abuse, and no history of sexual or physical abuse. Information was obtained on abuse incident characteristics and gender. The findings show significant differences in the severity of depression and specific depressive symptoms based on type of abuse experienced as well as gender. Adolescents who experienced sexual abuse and physical abuse were likely to be more depressed than those who experienced physical abuse only and those who did not experience any sexual abuse or physical abuse. Duration of the abuse, relationship to the perpetrator, and location of the abuse can apparently make a difference in depression symptoms. Overall, female adolescents were more depressed than male adolescents; however, abuse apparently had a differential effect in the relationship between gender and depression-severity levels. 1 table, 2 figures, 3 notes, and 42 references