as in exhausted
to deprive of emotional or intellectual vitality
groupthink and peer pressure have so petrified the thinking of the company's top brass that they haven't produced an innovative product in years
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Recent Examples of petrified
The only issue is his mother Laura (Wright), a woman who has lost a child once before and is petrified of a repeat.
—
Lily Ford, HollywoodReporter, 5 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for petrified
Lily Ford, HollywoodReporter, 5 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for petrified
Recent Examples of Synonyms for petrified
Verb
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Meanwhile, the man captaining the boat that gets her into the Amazon is possessed by thoughts of a lost love, a story even a head-in-her-hands Tereza is exhausted by.—
Ryan Lattanzio,
IndieWire,
3 Apr. 2026
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And what if the low-hanging fruit is exhausted and settlements become harder to come by?—
Adam Summers,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
3 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Yet for decades, this strategically important industry has been undermined by rampant customs fraud and chronic underinvestment in trade enforcement.—
Kim Glas,
Footwear News,
7 Apr. 2026
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However, those efforts could be undermined by a recent increase in 2-year yields that threatens to compress excess spreads, according to Bank of America.—
Liz Napolitano,
CNBC,
6 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Like the battery on her phone and computer, she was drained.—
Natalia Favre,
Los Angeles Times,
4 Apr. 2026
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At one point there’s a throwaway bit involving a roller coaster that dives into a pit of lava, eventually emerging with all its passengers transformed into happy skeletons; maybe we are supposed to be those happy skeletons, drained of life and loving it.—
Bilge Ebiri,
Vulture,
1 Apr. 2026
Verb
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But, Scanlon noted, the budget was weakened by federal policy changes.—
Keith M. Phaneuf,
Hartford Courant,
2 Apr. 2026
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Shipping and insurance costs, inflation and uncertainty are on the rise, and with currencies in developing countries now weakened, imports such as fuel and food are even more expensive for residents.—
Kevin Liptak,
CNN Money,
1 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Their leaves will begin to shrivel up, and their stems and roots will look dehydrated and thin.—
Heather Bien,
Southern Living,
4 Apr. 2026
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The child was not dehydrated and was discharged.—
Amelia Mugavero,
CBS News,
1 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Mahdi and Khadija had been struck by drought, and their bed was dry and desiccated, waterless down to its depths.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
12 Mar. 2026
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Dried or desiccated coconut flakes can be replaced with fresh coconut meat, or omit.—
The Washington Post,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
11 Mar. 2026
Verb
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After his conviction, Turing was chemically castrated.—
Michelle Del Rey,
USA Today,
20 Feb. 2026
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Set in the Italian opera world of the 1700s, Rice’s novel tells the not-for-the-squeamish story of two male soprano singers who were castrated as boys in order to maintain their high voices.—
David Browne,
Rolling Stone,
12 Nov. 2025
Verb
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In 2025, players from five teams wore shirts bearing the name of an important woman in their lives, instead of their names.—
Cerys Jones,
New York Times,
6 Apr. 2026
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Charlotte wore a tan coat by Catherine Walker, a favorite designer of her mom’s, over a dress by Self-Portrait, the same brand that made Middleton’s all-cream outfit for the occasion, per People.—
Elizabeth Logan,
Glamour,
6 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Petrified.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/petrified. Accessed 8 Apr. 2026.
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