1
as in to incapacitate
to cause severe or permanent injury to
the car crash may have crippled two people for life
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to injure
to reduce the soundness, effectiveness, or perfection of
the collision so severely crippled the ship that it had to be towed into port
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in to paralyze
to render powerless, ineffective, or unable to move
a wave of strikes crippled that nation's steel industry
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in harm
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in incapacitating
to cause severe or permanent injury to
the car crash may have crippled two people for life
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in damaging
to reduce the soundness, effectiveness, or perfection of
the collision so severely crippled the ship that it had to be towed into port
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in paralyzing
to render powerless, ineffective, or unable to move
a wave of strikes crippled that nation's steel industry
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of cripple
Joe McDonald, ajc, 9 Mar. 2023
Soon after, sanctions crippled the banking sector, food prices soared, and hospitals filled with malnourished children.
—Christina Goldbaum, BostonGlobe.com, 27 Feb. 2023
Soon after, sanctions crippled the banking sector, food prices soared and hospitals filled with malnourished children.
—Yaqoob Akbary Kiana Hayeri, New York Times, 27 Feb. 2023
If nothing is done, this could cripple the ISS.
—Kay Bailey Hutchison and Jane Harman, WSJ, 16 Aug. 2022
See All Example Sentences for cripple
Verb
That crippled Huawei’s smartphone brand, once one of the world’s biggest.
—Joe McDonald, ajc, 9 Mar. 2023
Soon after, sanctions crippled the banking sector, food prices soared, and hospitals filled with malnourished children.
—Christina Goldbaum, BostonGlobe.com, 27 Feb. 2023
Soon after, sanctions crippled the banking sector, food prices soared and hospitals filled with malnourished children.
—Yaqoob Akbary Kiana Hayeri, New York Times, 27 Feb. 2023
If nothing is done, this could cripple the ISS.
—Kay Bailey Hutchison and Jane Harman, WSJ, 16 Aug. 2022
See All Example Sentences for cripple
Recent Examples of Synonyms for cripple
Noun
-
Much of the debate, from critics on both sides of the aisle, has focused on the harm this could cause the most vulnerable Americans.—
Brian Castrucci,
Forbes.com,
28 May 2025
-
Many people can gamble or play games of chance without harm.—
Helena Wegner,
Sacbee.com,
28 May 2025
Noun
-
Child mutilation is not a parental right and on the contrary, should be criminal.—
Jackson Walker,
Baltimore Sun,
12 Feb. 2025
-
These attacks are often accompanied by extensive torture, rape, and mutilation.—
Timothy Nerozzi,
The Washington Examiner,
14 May 2025
Noun
-
By game day, two days after the Fever announced that Clark’s quadriceps injury would hold her out for at least two weeks, StubHub offered seats for less than $10.—
Sam Cohn,
Baltimore Sun,
29 May 2025
-
Attorney and longtime political donor John Morgan, founder of the mega personal injury firm Morgan & Morgan, created his own independent party this year and is also weighing a run for governor in the Sunshine State, despite supporting Democratic candidates and causes in the past.—
Ramsey Touchberry,
The Washington Examiner,
29 May 2025
Noun
-
Indeed, Riyadh, along with the rest of OPEC+, infuriated the White House by slashing production, which kept gasoline prices high, to Biden’s political detriment, and increased Russia’s oil revenue while the United States was sanctioning Moscow over the invasion of Ukraine.—
Marc Lynch,
Foreign Affairs,
12 May 2025
-
What’s more, Demers doesn’t see Newsom’s California return address as necessarily a detriment.—
Mark Z. Barabak,
Los Angeles Times,
8 May 2025
Noun
-
Over five years, the new law phases out subminimum wages that previously were allowed for people with disabilities, requiring them to be paid the same minimum wage as anyone else in Illinois — joining 18 other states.—
Robert McCoppin,
Chicago Tribune,
24 May 2025
-
Private schools are not bound by the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), which requires public schools to provide students with disabilities a free, appropriate public education.—
Cory Turner,
NPR,
23 May 2025
Noun
-
The potential gains from stealing money or creating mayhem in the markets will be too appealing to pass up.—
James Watt,
Forbes.com,
22 May 2025
-
The red-robed heroines of Gilead walked in unison down a street after a night of mayhem with sirens blaring in the background.—
Bryan West,
USA Today,
20 May 2025
Noun
-
The New York City Police Department (NYPD) has arrested one man and is searching for another after the brutal beating of a 27-year-old off-duty officer during a robbery in the Bronx early Saturday.—
Alexandra Koch,
FOXNews.com,
28 May 2025
-
He was then bound by the wrists and subjected to beatings, electric shock and a hit to the head from a gun.—
Mark Crudele,
ABC News,
27 May 2025
Noun
-
The ongoing search for Grant Hardin, 56, has sparked urgent warnings from local law enforcement, put residents of a small northwest Arkansas town on edge and reignited feelings of hurt and pain that the family of one victim had tried to bury.—
Minyvonne Burke,
NBC news,
28 May 2025
-
While many of those tariffs have been deescalated or paused, PDD is still feeling the hurt.—
Ben Kesslen,
Quartz,
27 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Cripple.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cripple. Accessed 6 Jun. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share