1
as in crippling
to cause severe or permanent injury to
a promising athlete who was severely disabled in a plane crash
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in paralyzing
to render powerless, ineffective, or unable to move
disabled the controls for unauthorized users
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of disabling
After that didn’t convince him to stop, the agents fired eight rounds into the engines, disabling the boat, according to the report.
—
David Goodhue
march 16, Miami Herald, 16 Mar. 2026
Her husband has a disabling mental disease.
—R. Eric Thomas, Chicago Tribune, 13 Mar. 2026
The prosecution contended that the daughter-in-law knowingly took specific steps leading up to Fraser’s disappearance, including arranging for his girlfriend to be at a spa on the day of the disappearance and disabling mobile phone service in the couple’s home.
—Bay Area News Group, Mercury News, 11 Mar. 2026
With the help of its two cutter pursuit boats and other assets, the Munro tracked and interdicted the vessel using warning shots and disabling fire from a helicopter.
—Louis Casiano, FOXNews.com, 9 Mar. 2026
Knuckling under the pressure to do something about this, Congress eventually passed a law that essentially denied such benefits to anyone whose only disabling condition was drug addiction or alcoholism.
—Tom Margenau, Dallas Morning News, 1 Mar. 2026
Even if the rates of death and disabling disease remain roughly the same, as case numbers grow, so too will the absolute amount of suffering.
—Katherine J. Wu, The Atlantic, 24 Feb. 2026
Andrew Wylam Andrew Wylam found himself on the front lines of a new crisis when long COVID emerged as a severe and disabling disease.
—Daniel Fusch, USA Today, 20 Feb. 2026
Inspectors from the state Department of Motor Vehicles responded and found that the commercial vehicle that was involved, a 2020 Hino box truck, sustained disabling damage.
—Justin Muszynski, Hartford Courant, 18 Feb. 2026
David Goodhue
march 16, Miami Herald, 16 Mar. 2026
Her husband has a disabling mental disease.
—R. Eric Thomas, Chicago Tribune, 13 Mar. 2026
The prosecution contended that the daughter-in-law knowingly took specific steps leading up to Fraser’s disappearance, including arranging for his girlfriend to be at a spa on the day of the disappearance and disabling mobile phone service in the couple’s home.
—Bay Area News Group, Mercury News, 11 Mar. 2026
With the help of its two cutter pursuit boats and other assets, the Munro tracked and interdicted the vessel using warning shots and disabling fire from a helicopter.
—Louis Casiano, FOXNews.com, 9 Mar. 2026
Knuckling under the pressure to do something about this, Congress eventually passed a law that essentially denied such benefits to anyone whose only disabling condition was drug addiction or alcoholism.
—Tom Margenau, Dallas Morning News, 1 Mar. 2026
Even if the rates of death and disabling disease remain roughly the same, as case numbers grow, so too will the absolute amount of suffering.
—Katherine J. Wu, The Atlantic, 24 Feb. 2026
Andrew Wylam Andrew Wylam found himself on the front lines of a new crisis when long COVID emerged as a severe and disabling disease.
—Daniel Fusch, USA Today, 20 Feb. 2026
Inspectors from the state Department of Motor Vehicles responded and found that the commercial vehicle that was involved, a 2020 Hino box truck, sustained disabling damage.
—Justin Muszynski, Hartford Courant, 18 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for disabling
Verb
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In Syria, Israeli strikes killed senior commanders of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, crippling Iran’s coördination and control.—
Sudarsan Raghavan,
New Yorker,
12 Mar. 2026
-
Dozens of countries have done the unprecedented, releasing an historic amount of crude from emergency reserves to prevent high oil prices from crippling the economy.—
David Goldman,
CNN Money,
12 Mar. 2026
Verb
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At age 14, Arias was caught in the crossfire of a shootout between rival gangs, paralyzing him from the waist down.—
Kayla Hayempour,
NBC news,
8 Mar. 2026
-
In a region where weather swings from paralyzing ice storms to scorching summers, these elements carry weight.—
Mary Grace Granados
Special Contributor,
Dallas Morning News,
5 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
The defendant at the trial, Fireman’s Fund Insurance Company, argued that its policy covered only losses resulting from a medically verified, incapacitating illness.—
Nancy Dillon,
Rolling Stone,
10 Mar. 2026
-
Larter's Angela has been put through the wringer on the second season of Landman, from getting into an explosive battle with Thornton's Tommy over her period to getting arrested for incapacitating two health inspectors during a visit to her local nursing home.—
Emlyn Travis,
Entertainment Weekly,
15 Jan. 2026
Verb
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European Union leaders on Thursday lashed out at Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, accusing him of hijacking critical aid for Ukraine and undermining EU decision-making in an effort to win an election at home.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
19 Mar. 2026
-
Under the border agreement, the firms involved can earn more than $1 billion over a decade, the human rights group said, accusing the government of undermining national sovereignty by privatizing state responsibilities.—
Jacqueline Charles,
Miami Herald,
17 Mar. 2026
Verb
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An Iranian missile attack on Saturday hit the southern Israeli desert town of Dimona, badly wounding a child, according to Israel's ambulance service, and injuring dozens of others.—
Michael Loria,
USA Today,
22 Mar. 2026
-
Israeli leaders visited Arad, one of two southern communities near a secretive nuclear research site struck by Iranian missiles late Saturday, wounding scores of people.—
Alon Bernstein,
Chicago Tribune,
22 Mar. 2026
Verb
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The aims have ranged from weakening Iran's nuclear program, missile program and support for armed proxies to enabling the Iranian people to overthrow the theocracy.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
23 Mar. 2026
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But that same logic was applied to other things like weakening labor protections, with factories shutting down and the country beginning to see the demise of labor unions.—
John Blake,
CNN Money,
22 Mar. 2026
Verb
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The round caused a severe hand injury, damaging multiple fingers and resulting in significant loss of functionality, according to police.—
Doug Myers,
CBS News,
22 Mar. 2026
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One of Scarpetta’s digressions in particular is damaging to the show’s fortunes.—
Graham Hillard,
The Washington Examiner,
20 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Disabling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/disabling. Accessed 23 Mar. 2026.
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