Merriam-Webster Logo
SINCE 1828
Menu
dictionary thesaurus

Thesaurus

cripple

verb

Synonyms and Antonyms of cripple

1 to cause severe or permanent injury to
  • The car crash may have crippled two people for life.
Synonyms of cripple

disable, incapacitate, lame, maim, mutilate
Words Related to cripple

dismember, hamstring, hobble, paralyze

batter, bruise, bung up, mangle, maul, rough (up)

gore, lacerate, wing, wound

disfigure, scar

kneecap

break, damage, harm, hurt, impair, injure

bash, beat, belt, bludgeon, buffet, drub, hammer, lace, lambaste (or lambast), lick, paste, pelt, pommel, pound, pummel, thump

bang, box, hit, punch, slap, smack, smash, sock, spank, swat, swipe, thrash, thwack, whack

flog, lash, wallop, whip

kill, murder

torment, torture
Near Antonyms of cripple

cure, heal, rehabilitate, remedy

doctor, fix, mend, patch

rejuvenate, renew, repair, restore
2 to reduce the soundness, effectiveness, or perfection of
  • The collision so severely crippled the ship that it had to be towed into port.
Synonyms of cripple

blemish, bloody, break, compromise, crab, cross (up), damage, deface, disfigure, endamage, flaw, harm, hurt, impair, injure, mar, spoil, vitiate
Words Related to cripple

deteriorate, enervate, enfeeble, undermine, weaken

erode, scour, wash out, wear (away)

blight, tarnish

dent, ding, dint

botch, gum (up), queer

lacerate, wound

disable, hamstring, lame, maim, mangle, mutilate, torment, torture

annihilate, bang up, bash, batter, clobber, crush, dash, decimate, demolish, desolate, destroy, devastate, do in, pulverize, raze, ruin, scourge, shatter, smash, tear down, total, waste, wipe out, wreck
Near Antonyms of cripple

cure, heal, help, rectify, rehabilitate, remedy

edit, remodel, revise

ameliorate, better, enhance, enrich, improve, meliorate, perfect, refine
Antonyms of cripple

doctor, fix, mend, patch, rebuild, recondition, reconstruct, renovate, repair, revamp
3 to render powerless, ineffective, or unable to move
  • a wave of strikes crippled that nation's steel industry
Synonyms of cripple

disable, hamstring, immobilize, incapacitate, paralyze, prostrate
Words Related to cripple

attenuate, debilitate, enervate, enfeeble, sap, tire, undercut, undermine, weaken

hobble, lame

maim, mutilate

knock out
Near Antonyms of cripple

energize, galvanize, invigorate, vitalize

fortify, strengthen

empower

freshen, refresh, refreshen, regenerate, rejuvenate, restore, revitalize, revive

Synonym Discussion of cripple

maim, cripple, mutilate, batter, mangle mean to injure so severely as to cause lasting damage. maim implies the loss or injury of a bodily member through violence.
    • maimed by a shark
cripple implies the loss or serious impairment of an arm or leg.
    • crippled for life in an accident
mutilate implies the cutting off or removal of an essential part of a person or thing thereby impairing its completeness, beauty, or function.
    • a tree mutilated by inept pruning
batter implies a series of blows that bruise deeply, deform, or mutilate.
    • an old ship battered by fierce storms
mangle implies a tearing or crushing that leaves deep wounds.
    • a soldier's leg mangled by shrapnel

Learn More about cripple

  1. See words that rhyme with cripple Dictionary: Definition of cripple Medical Dictionary: Definition of cripple Spanish Central: Translation of cripple Nglish: Translation of cripple for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of cripple for Arabic speakers

Seen and Heard

What made you want to look up cripple? Please tell us where you read or heard it (including the quote, if possible).

show hide

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Words at Play

Ask the Editors

Word Games