as in to paralyze
to render powerless, ineffective, or unable to move
town councils felt immobilized by the powers newly granted to the state legislation
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 immobilize
People avoided crowded places during epidemics, and hospital wards filled with children encased in iron lungs after the virus immobilized their breathing muscles.
—
CNN Money, 5 Aug. 2025
In a clinical trial, elderly people immobilized by arthritic knees, an impediment that hastens muscle wasting, experienced six-per-cent growth in their leg muscles.
—Tad Friend, New Yorker, 4 Aug. 2025
Under city ordinance, a car may be immobilized by a boot after three unpaid parking tickets.
—Tony Plohetski, Austin American Statesman, 30 July 2025
At the age of nine, McLaren was diagnosed with Perthes disease, a rare childhood bone disorder that affected his left hip and forced him to spend more than two years in hospital with his leg immobilized in a traction device.
—Andreas Wiseman, Deadline, 28 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for immobilize
CNN Money, 5 Aug. 2025
In a clinical trial, elderly people immobilized by arthritic knees, an impediment that hastens muscle wasting, experienced six-per-cent growth in their leg muscles.
—Tad Friend, New Yorker, 4 Aug. 2025
Under city ordinance, a car may be immobilized by a boot after three unpaid parking tickets.
—Tony Plohetski, Austin American Statesman, 30 July 2025
At the age of nine, McLaren was diagnosed with Perthes disease, a rare childhood bone disorder that affected his left hip and forced him to spend more than two years in hospital with his leg immobilized in a traction device.
—Andreas Wiseman, Deadline, 28 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for immobilize
Recent Examples of Synonyms for immobilize
Verb
-
Because her brother is paralyzed after an attack on a Charlotte Area Transit System bus in March.—
Andrew Dys,
Charlotte Observer,
15 Sep. 2025
-
Congress does not fail to act on guns because it is paralyzed.—
John J. Donohue,
MSNBC Newsweek,
12 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
By setting up permissions in advance, the agent (individual with the power to act on behalf of someone else) can step in immediately if the account owner is incapacitated.—
Kristin McKenna,
Forbes.com,
10 Sep. 2025
-
In addition to grandmaster status, Myers is also a fourth degree in hosinsool, a self-defense technique used to protect, disarm and incapacitate an attacker, focusing on practicality to end a dangerous situation quickly with powerful strikes, locks and take-downs.—
Nicole Stracek,
Twin Cities,
8 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Killing, Corrupting, and Exiling of Science Under Hitler Widely regarded as the world’s research powerhouse in the 1920s and early 30s, German science was crippled by the Nazis starting in 1933, when Hitler gained power as Chancellor.—
Scott Montgomery,
Forbes.com,
15 Sep. 2025
-
Deadly floods in Asia have devastated crops, crippling already fragile food production.—
Tom Chivers,
semafor.com,
11 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Now, its Supreme Court is moving to hold a former president accountable for allegedly trying to undermine democracy and steer the country back toward authoritarian rule.—
Júlia Dias Carneiro,
NPR,
11 Sep. 2025
-
Failing to meet that obligation undermines not only educational opportunity, but also the sovereignty, economic vitality, and cultural survival of Tribal nations.—
Marybeth Gasman,
Forbes.com,
11 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Immobilize.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/immobilize. Accessed 18 Sep. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share