disempower

verb

dis·​em·​pow·​er ˌdis-im-ˈpau̇(-ə)r 

disempowered; disempowering; disempowers

transitive verb

: to deprive of power, authority, or influence : make weak, ineffectual, or unimportant

disempowerment

ˌdis-im-ˈpau̇(-ə)r-mənt 

noun

Examples of disempower in a Sentence

They have been disempowered by a society that believes they are intellectually inferior.

Recent Examples on the Web

Strikes on Tehran divert news coverage from the bills that the ruling coalition has introduced to disempower the attorney general and subject the broadcast media to government control. —Gershom Gorenberg, The Atlantic, 18 Mar. 2026

The United States should use its economic weapons not only to disempower the junta but also to support its replacement. —Dan Swift, Foreign Affairs, 30 Sep. 2025

In other words, real care is not supposed to disempower. —Mark Travers, Forbes.com, 26 June 2025

There's a lot of talk in the AI safety world about the degree to which these systems are likely to do things like power-seeking, to be deceptive, to seek to disempower humans and escape their control. —Billy Perrigo, Time, 27 Apr. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1813, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for disempower

• candlepower
• cauliflower
• overpower
• superpower
• vavasour
• waterpower
• airpower
• brainpower
• devour
• empower
• firepower
• horsepower

Kids Definition

disempower

verb

dis·​em·​pow·​er dis-im-ˈpau̇(-ə)r 

: to keep one from having authority, power, or influence : make weak or unimportant

disempowerment

-mənt 

noun