as in to paralyze
to deprive of courage or confidence
being eliminated early in one's very first tennis tournament can be an emasculating experience
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Recent Examples of emasculate
By emasculating standards for performance, equity grading has both encouraged and hidden academic dysfunction.
—
Steve Forbes, Forbes.com, 16 Sep. 2025
Apparently, not in the D.C. Court of Appeals, and our cowardly Congress will rue the day this emasculating ruling remains the law of the land.
—Thomas G. Moukawsher, MSNBC Newsweek, 19 Aug. 2025
He’s not emasculated, there’s no affair on the side, there’s no secret loathing, there’s no immature handling of arguments or true failures of communication with dire consequences.
—Alex Ross, People.com, 19 July 2025
Ben feels emasculated by his layoff and the sext-only affair that Louise had with one of the dads at their daughter Agnes’s (Alix West Lefler) school.
—Alison Willmore, Vulture, 13 Sep. 2024
See All Example Sentences for emasculate
Steve Forbes, Forbes.com, 16 Sep. 2025
Apparently, not in the D.C. Court of Appeals, and our cowardly Congress will rue the day this emasculating ruling remains the law of the land.
—Thomas G. Moukawsher, MSNBC Newsweek, 19 Aug. 2025
He’s not emasculated, there’s no affair on the side, there’s no secret loathing, there’s no immature handling of arguments or true failures of communication with dire consequences.
—Alex Ross, People.com, 19 July 2025
Ben feels emasculated by his layoff and the sext-only affair that Louise had with one of the dads at their daughter Agnes’s (Alix West Lefler) school.
—Alison Willmore, Vulture, 13 Sep. 2024
See All Example Sentences for emasculate
Recent Examples of Synonyms for emasculate
Verb
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The role is particularly noteworthy considering Dane announced earlier this year that he was diagnosed with ALS, a neurodegenerative disease that gradually paralyzes the body by destroying the nerve cells that control muscle movement.—
Ethan Shanfeld,
Variety,
20 Oct. 2025
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The demonstrations come as the federal government enters its 18th day of shutdown, which has paralyzed federal programs and services while testing the constitutional balance of power.—
Adeola Adeosun,
MSNBC Newsweek,
18 Oct. 2025
Verb
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But hiring off-duty cops to intimidate and extort victims, or throw them in jail, represented a significant escalation.—
Jesse Hyde,
Rolling Stone,
21 Oct. 2025
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While attempting a new hairstyle can feel a bit intimidating, Taylor encourages experimentation and reminds us that curls come in various shapes, patterns, and sizes.—
Essence,
Essence,
21 Oct. 2025
Verb
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There are no effective repellents or devices that frighten away raccoons.—
Arricca Elin SanSone,
Southern Living,
18 Oct. 2025
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One, frightened, pressed her belly into the pavement.—
Rachel Monroe,
New Yorker,
16 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Usually when a pet is terrified of kennel life, a shelter moves quickly to find a loving foster to provide comfort, which is what happened with this little one.—
TJ Macias,
Kansas City Star,
20 Oct. 2025
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Grasso is terrified of being found out as the mole in the task force.—
Grace Byron,
Vulture,
20 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Carter Taylor of Kansas City, an elementary school educator and legislative chair for the Kansas City Federation of Teachers, said efforts to privatize education should scare parents.—
PJ Green,
Kansas City Star,
19 Oct. 2025
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Playing on parental fears, The Babadook has been scaring the daylights out of us for a solid decade now.—
Gwen Ihnat,
Entertainment Weekly,
18 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Emasculate.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/emasculate. Accessed 24 Oct. 2025.
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