handicapping

verb

present participle of handicap
as in hampering
to create difficulty for the work or activity of the baseball player's small size did not handicap him in the least

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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 handicapping Paul stressed that James wasn’t currently handicapping any teams after James and the Lakers mutually parted aways following eight seasons. — Mark Medina, Forbes.com, 10 July 2026 Who else was astute enough to recognize the potential of a Sun Devil when handicapping hypothetical mascot fights? — Ralph D. Russo, New York Times, 2 June 2026 Because no one knows with clarity how things will proceed from here, handicapping the market becomes an exercise in watching for extreme conditions to develop that price in enough potential economic disruption to generate a cushion against further downside surprises. — Michael Santoli, CNBC, 30 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for handicapping
  1. hampering
  2. impeding
  3. hindering
  4. embarrassing
  5. obstructing
Verb
  • Yet Cruz sees no time to waste, as non-revenue-generating sports continue to fold at universities big and small, hampering US competitiveness in Olympic sports.
    — Burgess Everett, semafor.com, 20 July 2026
  • Because the injection must then be sent (or pushed) to each specific target, the scale of the attack is limited, hampering mass exploits that hit the Internet at large.
    — Dan Goodin, ArsTechnica, 8 July 2026
Definition of hampering
Verb
  • The findings come as countries are determining how to put up guardrails around AI without impeding their ability to compete in the rapidly developing field.
    — Didi Tang, Fortune, 16 July 2026
  • These vehicles were blocking and impeding fire operations, and several were non-operational and required tow truck assistance for removal.
    — Jeff Nguyen, CBS News, 1 July 2026
Definition of impeding
Verb
  • Still, they weren’t built for 2026, and playing in a minor-league park might be hindering their pitching development.
    — Ken Rosenthal, New York Times, 21 July 2026
  • Meanwhile, most workers find themselves on the hook to fund more of their own retirement than their parents did and to pay more for their healthcare and insurance coverage, hindering their efforts to save for retirement.
    — Kirk McClure, Fortune, 14 July 2026
Definition of hindering
Verb
  • Eric Silva isn’t even embarrassing them this season in the Tigers’ system over the Canha trade.
    — Grant Brisbee, New York Times, 17 July 2026
  • Ukraine has carried out major drone strikes on Russia’s two largest cities, embarrassing the Kremlin with images of black plumes of smoke that circulated widely online, despite regulations restricting their publication.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 1 July 2026
Definition of embarrassing
Verb
  • Moreover, the State Department did not consider Israel’s months-long pattern of obstructing aid; the department only assessed the volume of aid flowing when the report was being finalized.
    — David D. Kirkpatrick, New Yorker, 20 July 2026
  • The passenger, Alan Pena Sabogn, 21, also of Bogotá, was later apprehended and arrested on suspicion of failing to obey a lawful order, obstructing a peace officer and providing false identification, authorities said.
    — Landon Mion, FOXNews.com, 20 July 2026
Definition of obstructing

Browse Nearby Words

handicappers
handicapping
handicaps
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Handicapping.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/handicapping. Accessed 25 Jul. 2026.

Copy Citation

More from Merriam-Webster on handicapping

Nglish: Translation of handicapping for Spanish Speakers

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Democracy or Republic: What's the difference?

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Do you 'say your piece' or 'say your peace'?

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

The Longest Long Words List

Ten Words Ending with a Silent ‘T’

The Words of the Week - Jul 24

Why do we say 'fly off the handle'?
See More

Popular

See More

Democracy or Republic: What's the difference?

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
chain-question-mark
Missing Link Quiz July 2026 Five seconds to figure out the word that fits bot...
See All