impairment

noun

im·​pair·​ment im-ˈper-mənt 

plural impairments

: the act of impairing something or the state or condition of being impaired : diminishment or loss of function or ability

… it does not help reverse the impairment of cognitive activity caused by diazepam …

—Corby Kummer

Trichloroethylene has been classified by EPA as a probable human carcinogen, although its primary effect is impairment of the central nervous system.

—Chemical & Engineering News

Persons with hearing impairments can now get information about local parks and their facilities by calling the recently installed TDD phone numbers within the Parks Department.

—Maryland Magazine

Studies show that roughly 11 percent of all kindergarteners have speech or language impairments …

—The Springfield (Massachusetts) Union-News

Examples of impairment in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

She is charged by the Wayne County Prosecutor's Office with one count each of operating while intoxicated causing death, failure to stop at the scene of an accident resulting in serious impairment or death and assaulting, resisting or obstructing a police officer, law enforcement said. —Nick Lentz, CBS News, 3 Jan. 2026

Total impairment across all three brand assets was $797 million. —Amanda Gerut, Fortune, 2 Jan. 2026

BCIs offer not only relief from physical and neurological impairments, but new and even superior control of computers and cybernetic devices. —New Atlas, 1 Jan. 2026

Others have linked the drug to higher rates of depression, anxiety disorders, psychosis, cognitive impairment, poor academic performance, cardiovascular problems and more. —Bloomberg Opinion, Twin Cities, 31 Dec. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined above