deactivate

verb

de·​ac·​ti·​vate (ˌ)dē-ˈak-tə-ˌvāt 

deactivated; deactivating; deactivates

transitive verb

: to make inactive or ineffective

deactivate a bomb

deactivate a chemical compound

deactivation

(ˌ)dē-ˌak-tə-ˈvā-shən 

noun

deactivator

(ˌ)dē-ˈak-tə-ˌvā-tər 

noun

Synonyms

• kill
• brake
• shut off

Examples of deactivate in a Sentence

deactivate the machine carefully, or you'll risk an electric shock

Recent Examples on the Web

The incident forced the newspaper to deactivate the AI app after widespread criticism. —Douglas B. Laney, Forbes.com, 17 Aug. 2025

That case was deactivated because of conflicting statements from witnesses and a lack of video evidence from CCTV cameras in the area. —Lauren Penington, Denver Post, 14 Aug. 2025

Black’s attorneys want the device deactivated at or immediately before his lethal injection Tuesday morning. —Dakin Andone, CNN Money, 4 Aug. 2025

So, instead of implementing a full shutdown, Google will take a mixed approach: Links that showed no activity in late 2024 will be deactivated, while those that did will remain usable. —Will McCurdy, PC Magazine, 4 Aug. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1926, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for deactivate

• abbreviate
• accelerate
• accommodate
• accumulate
• acuminate
• adjudicate
• adulterate
• affiliate
• agglomerate
• agglutinate
• alleviate
• amalgamate

Kids Definition

deactivate

verb

de·​ac·​ti·​vate (ˈ)dē-ˈak-tə-ˌvāt 

: to make inactive or ineffective

deactivation

(ˌ)dē-ˌak-tə-ˈvā-shən 

noun

Medical Definition

deactivate

transitive verb

de·​ac·​ti·​vate (ˈ)dē-ˈak-tə-ˌvāt 

deactivated; deactivating

1

: to make inactive or ineffective

2

: to deprive of chemical activity

deactivate an enzyme

deactivation

-ˌak-tə-ˈvā-shən 

noun