paralyzed

1 of 2

adjective

par·​a·​lyzed ˈper-ə-ˌlīzd 

ˈpa-rə-

1

: affected with paralysis

… a viral infection that paralyzed half her face and impaired her balance, hearing, and eyesight …

—Golf

If the right hemisphere of the brain is badly damaged in its sensory (parietal) areas, patients may show … an unawareness that anything is the matter, even though the left side of their body is senseless or paralyzed.

—Oliver Sacks

Thousands of paralyzed people worldwide are in the socially closed-off state.

—Christen Brownlee

2

: rendered incapable of movement or action

I was not found by the teacher until what seemed to me hours later but was probably five minutes, paralyzed with fright.

—Kay Boyle

Those who uncover plagiarism become paralyzed with embarrassment, letting the culprit escape rather than confronting him.

—Walter Kendrick

paralyzed

2 of 2

past tense and past participle of paralyze

Synonyms of paralyzed

Adjective

• disabled
• paralytic

Examples of paralyzed in a Sentence

Adjective

special ramps for paralyzed people in wheelchairs

a seemingly paralyzed mayor sat by as the city's crime rate soared

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

Lindsay Clancy was accused of strangling the three children with workout bands and then attempted suicide, including by jumping out a window, leaving her paralyzed. — Jeanine Santucci, USA Today, 5 Sep. 2026

Clancy later jumped from a second-story window in an apparent suicide attempt, which left her paralyzed from the waist down. — Angel Saunders, PEOPLE, 5 Sep. 2026

Clancy jumped from a second-story window immediately after and remains paralyzed from the waist down. — Michael Casey, Los Angeles Times, 4 Sep. 2026

Lindsay Clancy survived after jumping from a second-story window and suffered injuries that left her paralyzed in a wheelchair. — Michael Ruiz , Adam Sabes , Greg Wehner, FOXNews.com, 4 Sep. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

Adjective

1763, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for paralyzed

• acclimatized
• aerosolized
• alphabetized
• aluminized
• anaesthetized
• anesthetized
• annualized
• antagonized
• apologised
• apologized
• capitalised
• capitalized