1
as in to undermine
to deprive of emotional or intellectual vitality
a lifetime of working in dreary jobs had enervated his very soul
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to weaken
to diminish the physical strength of
the surgery really enervated me for weeks afterwards
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in feeble
Related Words
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 enervate
Leslie Felperin,
HollywoodReporter,
24 May 2026
Campbell, the North Carolina folk singer, describes an enervating process marked by back-and-forth exchanges and lots of waiting.
—
Jon Blistein,
Rolling Stone,
25 Mar. 2026
Jenny deflected me with enervating ease.
—
Literary Hub,
13 Mar. 2026
The results are often enervating though sometimes clumsy.
—
Eli Enis,
Pitchfork,
3 Feb. 2026
This may reframe his friend’s enervating habit.
—
Hope Hunt,
Baltimore Sun,
30 Jan. 2026
Some of these values—such as a disciplined commitment to physical fitness—are good and, in my opinion, necessary correctives to the enervating distractions of 21st-century living.
—
Dan Brooks,
The Atlantic,
2 Oct. 2025
Bears do not truly hibernate, but instead enervate, or enter a state of torpor, in their dens.
—
Natalie Krebs,
Outdoor Life,
25 Sep. 2025
Looming over all of it has been the sad, enervating situation with Alexander Isak, forever enshrined as a club legend by dint of Wembley last season but now beyond the point of tarnishing that legacy.
—
George Caulkin,
New York Times,
10 Aug. 2025
Verb
The impact of that shocking final scene is sufficient to send viewers out feeling enervated after what’s been a pretty desultory final act.
—
Leslie Felperin,
HollywoodReporter,
24 May 2026
Campbell, the North Carolina folk singer, describes an enervating process marked by back-and-forth exchanges and lots of waiting.
—
Jon Blistein,
Rolling Stone,
25 Mar. 2026
Jenny deflected me with enervating ease.
—
Literary Hub,
13 Mar. 2026
The results are often enervating though sometimes clumsy.
—
Eli Enis,
Pitchfork,
3 Feb. 2026
This may reframe his friend’s enervating habit.
—
Hope Hunt,
Baltimore Sun,
30 Jan. 2026
Some of these values—such as a disciplined commitment to physical fitness—are good and, in my opinion, necessary correctives to the enervating distractions of 21st-century living.
—
Dan Brooks,
The Atlantic,
2 Oct. 2025
Bears do not truly hibernate, but instead enervate, or enter a state of torpor, in their dens.
—
Natalie Krebs,
Outdoor Life,
25 Sep. 2025
Looming over all of it has been the sad, enervating situation with Alexander Isak, forever enshrined as a club legend by dint of Wembley last season but now beyond the point of tarnishing that legacy.
—
George Caulkin,
New York Times,
10 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for enervate
Verb
-
Context that undermines sensational allegations is minimized.
-
Allies include Brin’s Building a Better California, which is bankrolling two counter-measures aimed at undermining the billionaire tax.
Verb
-
Vcg | Visual China Group | Getty Images BEIJING — China’s consumer spending slowdown persisted in June, with growth during one of the country’s largest online shopping festivals weakening sharply from a year earlier.
-
All three of those protagonists have been weakened in their roles by what has gone on.
Adjective
-
The gags are both belabored and feeble.
-
Jolted by a feeble office market, a growing number of developers are considering ways to convert their office properties to other uses, such as housing projects.
Verb
-
In the finals, Israel faced an Australian team already exhausted after fending off South Korea, Japan and Rhodesia (itself in the Asian tournament after being banned in Africa over its white governing regime).
-
For years, people have been frustrated and exhausted by the seemingly endless amount of swiping and small talk that go nowhere on dating apps.
Verb
-
According to Ceconi, these products don’t actually soften, but instead deposit a waxy coating on the fabric.
-
And that's especially critical this July with inflation surging again, wages softening and higher borrowing costs expected to remain unchanged for the foreseeable future.
Adjective
-
By 1877, the hope for Black equality met an enfeebled federal government that essentially permitted Jim Crow to run amok.
-
But given the island’s small size and enfeebled state, the risks seem much smaller than in Iran.
Verb
-
Several environmental groups have also proposed removing or entirely bypassing the Glen Canyon Dam, draining what's left into Lake Mead, and implementing stricter water conservation measures.
-
The president said that his administration would have to drain the pool and start over again as the new liner shed chunks of itself.
Adjective
-
In between languid lake swims and sensual forest escapades, old crushes surface and new anxieties rear their heads in this deft portrait of millennial disenchantment.
-
Four, graciously sized outdoor pools—all carved in local stone and lined with plush loungers—invite long, languid afternoons.
Cite this Entry
“Enervate.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/enervate. Accessed 5 Jul. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
