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
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
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Recent Examples of disabling
The study involved 198 adults with generalized anxiety disorder, or GAD, a disabling form of anxiety that affects about 1 in 10 people over the course of a year.
—
Jon Hamilton, NPR, 5 Sep. 2025
For people in their retirement years, ages 65 to 74, nearly one in four experiences disabling hearing loss.
—Joseph Coughlin, Forbes.com, 2 Sep. 2025
Should Microsoft be doing more to stop ransomware groups from disabling Defender?
—Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 29 Aug. 2025
Similarly, rates of new long COVID diagnoses have slowed since the early days of the pandemic, but new infections continue to trigger the lingering and disabling syndrome.
—Meghan Bartels, Scientific American, 27 Aug. 2025
The youth safety and parental control features TikTok has rolled out in recent years include adding default privacy settings and disabling late-night notifications.
—Clare Duffy, CNN Money, 21 Aug. 2025
Andrew Wylam Andrew Wylam found himself on the front lines of a new crisis when long COVID emerged as a severe and disabling disease.
—Lyssanoel Frater, USA Today, 11 Aug. 2025
But an oxygen tank exploded two days into the mission, disabling crucial electrical systems.
—Greg Evans, Deadline, 8 Aug. 2025
Zrnčević twists a dial, engaging drift mode, a setting that channels 100 percent of that four-digit power to the rear wheels while disabling the stability control.
—Sean Evans, Robb Report, 7 Aug. 2025
Jon Hamilton, NPR, 5 Sep. 2025
For people in their retirement years, ages 65 to 74, nearly one in four experiences disabling hearing loss.
—Joseph Coughlin, Forbes.com, 2 Sep. 2025
Should Microsoft be doing more to stop ransomware groups from disabling Defender?
—Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 29 Aug. 2025
Similarly, rates of new long COVID diagnoses have slowed since the early days of the pandemic, but new infections continue to trigger the lingering and disabling syndrome.
—Meghan Bartels, Scientific American, 27 Aug. 2025
The youth safety and parental control features TikTok has rolled out in recent years include adding default privacy settings and disabling late-night notifications.
—Clare Duffy, CNN Money, 21 Aug. 2025
Andrew Wylam Andrew Wylam found himself on the front lines of a new crisis when long COVID emerged as a severe and disabling disease.
—Lyssanoel Frater, USA Today, 11 Aug. 2025
But an oxygen tank exploded two days into the mission, disabling crucial electrical systems.
—Greg Evans, Deadline, 8 Aug. 2025
Zrnčević twists a dial, engaging drift mode, a setting that channels 100 percent of that four-digit power to the rear wheels while disabling the stability control.
—Sean Evans, Robb Report, 7 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for disabling
Verb
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Thomas’ absence has been crippling for the Giants in recent years.—
Pat Leonard,
New York Daily News,
19 Aug. 2025
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More importantly, if just one lock were disabled or destroyed, the passage from east to west would be essentially inoperable, crippling the United States and its military defenses.—
Shoshi Parks,
Popular Science,
14 Aug. 2025
Verb
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High-stakes performance reviews can be especially paralyzing.—
Ruth Oh Reitmeier,
Forbes.com,
3 Sep. 2025
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During lockdown, Mendelsund was consumed by a deep and paralyzing depression.—
Stuart Miller,
Oc Register,
5 Aug. 2025
Verb
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To write one’s way out of the incapacitating dependence of daughterhood into autonomy means shedding the unquestioning fidelity of a child.—
Rebecca Mead,
New Yorker,
3 Sep. 2025
-
This is not some bloodthirsty pirate contempt with conquering a pleasure planet like everyone thought, but a calculative master manipulator and tactician who knew the value of Kalgan and used it to acquire a larger prize — incapacitating the Empire’s attack forces.—
Rafael Motamayor,
Vulture,
9 Aug. 2025
Verb
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Conversely, tax noncompliance could be the death knell undermining an otherwise strong application.—
Virginia La Torre Jeker,
Forbes.com,
9 Sep. 2025
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Layered onto all of this is a political system in which priorities flip every few years, undermining the long-term planning and financing that such megaprojects demand.—
Ben Jones,
CNN Money,
8 Sep. 2025
Verb
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A student who authorities say opened fire at his Colorado high school, wounding two classmates and then turning the gun on himself, has died, according to the local sheriff's office.—
Alex Stone,
ABC News,
11 Sep. 2025
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Police say Reed then opened fire in the parking lot, killing Jones, wounding a 23-year-old Dallas man and also shooting at off-duty officers who were working at the business.—
Shambhavi Rimal,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
10 Sep. 2025
Verb
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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
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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
Verb
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Avoid using excessive water to prevent damaging the floors.—
Daley Quinn,
Southern Living,
7 Sep. 2025
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Large hail, damaging wind, and continuous cloud to ground lightning are occurring with this storm.—
CA Weather Bot,
Sacbee.com,
5 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Disabling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/disabling. Accessed 11 Sep. 2025.
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