as in weakening
to diminish the physical strength of
the heart surgery debilitated the college athlete beyond his worst fears
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in demoralizing
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Dissimilar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of debilitating
Mark Sparrow, Forbes.com, 13 Aug. 2025
Conditions such as fibromyalgia, migraines, and chronic back pain often involve emotional suffering that can be more debilitating than the physical sensation.
—New Atlas, 11 July 2025
The Editorial Board, Chicago Tribune, 29 Aug. 2025
Tributes started pouring in soon after the announcement came out, and many expressed the same shock that someone so vibrant and powerful on screen could have been privately dealing with a debilitating illness off screen.
—Stephanie Sengwe, People.com, 28 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for debilitating
Verb
Anyone who has ever suffered from a repetitive strain injury or carpal tunnel syndrome will know how debilitating and painful those kind of injuries can be.
—Mark Sparrow, Forbes.com, 13 Aug. 2025
Conditions such as fibromyalgia, migraines, and chronic back pain often involve emotional suffering that can be more debilitating than the physical sensation.
—New Atlas, 11 July 2025
Adjective
The budget passed without the financially debilitating $200 million loan necessary to cover the pension payment.
—The Editorial Board, Chicago Tribune, 29 Aug. 2025
Tributes started pouring in soon after the announcement came out, and many expressed the same shock that someone so vibrant and powerful on screen could have been privately dealing with a debilitating illness off screen.
—Stephanie Sengwe, People.com, 28 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for debilitating
Recent Examples of Synonyms for debilitating
Verb
-
Then the hurricane continued on a more northward path around the islands and finally began weakening after powerful 145 mph winds tapered off.—
Dinah Voyles Pulver,
USA Today,
11 Sep. 2025
-
Total job growth was revised lower by the largest amount in history, The revisions erased 911 thousand jobs over the full year period, adding to mounting concerns of a weakening labor market and fueling questions as to the reliability of monthly data being used to gauge employment.—
JJ Kinahan,
Forbes.com,
10 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
Watching what’s unfolding around us can be demoralizing.—
Stacey Abrams,
Time,
28 Aug. 2025
-
Those are the kinds of demoralizing stats that break Hern’s heart.—
Michael Ashley,
Forbes.com,
28 Aug. 2025
Verb
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Serving as a throughline for this 40mm model’s development are Genta’s signature, which led to the idea of his signature octagonal shape softening into the sensual curves of a cushion, leaving the ambiguity of a shape that appears round at first glance.—
Lily Templeton,
Footwear News,
4 Sep. 2025
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On one hand, the job market is softening, and there’s political pressure from the president to slash rates aggressively to 1%.—
Frank Holmes,
Forbes.com,
2 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
By aligning strategic work with those rhythms, productivity can feel more natural and less draining.—
Matthew Kayser,
USA Today,
28 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
For more than a century, the region has been caught in a thrilling but exhausting economic romance.—
Reid Rasner,
Forbes.com,
10 Sep. 2025
-
Jones remained on Ohio's death row for decades, exhausting most of his appeals, until Hamilton County Common Pleas Judge Wende Cross overturned his murder conviction, freed him from prison and granted him a new trial two years ago.—
Dan Horn,
The Enquirer,
3 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
Grand Luna has an unprecedented high-frequency extension that goes as high as 30kHz, while remaining smooth, non-fatiguing, and eliminating harshness or sibilance thanks to Campfire’s acoustic engineering.—
Mark Sparrow,
Forbes.com,
8 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
To avoid wasting time and money, leaders need a simple rule.—
Rishit Lakhani,
Forbes.com,
11 Sep. 2025
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But slow oxygen chemistry has remained a stubborn bottleneck, wasting energy and shortening battery life.—
Neetika Walter,
Interesting Engineering,
10 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
Iamaleava, the Tennessee transfer, threw for just 136 yards with one touchdown and an interception in a discouraging Bruins debut at the Rose Bowl.—
Matt Wadleigh,
MSNBC Newsweek,
3 Sep. 2025
-
That’s a discouraging sign for inflation.—
Nino Paoli,
Fortune,
21 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Debilitating.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/debilitating. Accessed 12 Sep. 2025.
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