emasculating

verb

present participle of emasculate
as in paralyzing
to deprive of courage or confidence being eliminated early in one's very first tennis tournament can be an emasculating experience

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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 emasculating In the political sphere—an arena that’s increasingly entangled with social media—figures such as Elon Musk decry empathy as an emasculating plague. — Katy Waldman, New Yorker, 12 Jan. 2026 And yet precisely this dynamic ensures that commitment between men, the kind of domesticity that David and Giovanni attempt to establish in Giovanni’s room, can only ever be emasculating. — Garth Greenwell, Harpers Magazine, 19 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for emasculating
  1. paralyzing
  2. intimidating
  3. frightening
  4. terrifying
  5. scaring
Verb
  • The tropical storm hit Japan days after Typhoon Dolphin created havoc in parts of southern Japan, paralyzing traffic and sending hundreds to take shelter.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 11 Aug. 2026
  • Gripped by a paralyzing fear for the fate of her future children, Naama returns to the same monument where the infidelity took place; there, her parents appear before her.
    — Katie Campione, Deadline, 4 Aug. 2026
Definition of paralyzing
Verb
  • If retirement investing feels intimidating, SoFi Invest strips out a lot of the friction.
    — Andreina Rodriguez, CNBC, 12 Aug. 2026
  • Leadership roles or intimidating pivots that require you to have courage are no exception.
    — Valerie Mesa, PEOPLE, 12 Aug. 2026
Definition of intimidating
Verb
  • Powell tried to open the stall door, and then began fondling himself, frightening the 11-year-old, who tried to leave, but Powell blocked him from getting out.
    — Todd Feurer, CBS News, 6 June 2026
  • This war has been a disaster for them, frightening away foreign investors, tourists and talent and burdening them with a future of huge new defense bills to deter Iran after the United States is gone.
    — Thomas L. Friedman, Mercury News, 15 May 2026
Definition of frightening
Verb
  • Spotify is terrifying much of the podcast industry with a tiny little widget.
    — Max Tani, semafor.com, 9 Aug. 2026
  • What for decades seemed a hypothetical problem to be solved at some later date is suddenly a concrete, terrifying one for today.
    — Stephen Witt, New Yorker, 30 July 2026
Definition of terrifying
Verb
  • Be a menace to people in the community, driving his boat 70 to 80 miles per hour, driving around scaring the heck out of people, taking people's lives.
    — Lauren Victory, CBS News, 6 Aug. 2026
  • Notably, the research shows that pumas contribute most to decreased deer-vehicle collisions by scaring their prey, and not killing them, highlights Mark Elbroch, director of the Puma Program for Panthera and also a study co-author.
    — Margherita Bassi, Popular Science, 5 Aug. 2026
Definition of scaring

Browse Nearby Words

emasculates
emasculating
emasculation
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Cite this Entry

“Emasculating.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/emasculating. Accessed 18 Aug. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on emasculating

Nglish: Translation of emasculating for Spanish Speakers

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