as in paralyzing
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 immobilizing
As the machines thunder down the track, momentum causes the weight-box to slide across the trailer until the balance shifts so much that the sled digs into the ground and the back tires lift, immobilizing it.
—
Zach Jaworski, NPR, 18 Aug. 2025
Zach Jaworski, NPR, 18 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for immobilizing
Verb
-
High-stakes performance reviews can be especially paralyzing.—
Ruth Oh Reitmeier,
Forbes.com,
3 Sep. 2025
-
During lockdown, Mendelsund was consumed by a deep and paralyzing depression.—
Stuart Miller,
Oc Register,
5 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
Thomas’ absence has been crippling for the Giants in recent years.—
Pat Leonard,
New York Daily News,
19 Aug. 2025
-
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
-
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
-
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
Cite this Entry
“Immobilizing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/immobilizing. Accessed 11 Sep. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share