1
as in sterile
not able to produce fruit or offspring
most mules are impotent
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in helpless
unable to act or achieve one's purpose
an impotent ruler who was just a figurehead
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of impotent
But this is the first time in recent memory in which the will of the majority feels both irrelevant and totally impotent.
—
Jay Caspian Kang, New Yorker, 13 Jan. 2026
This unsettling thriller about impotent (emotionally, literally) university professor Ali (Turkish star Ekin Koç), on the path to vengeance after the suspicious death of his mother, scored strong reviews (including my own) and the World Cinema Directing Award out of the Utah festival.
—Ryan Lattanzio, IndieWire, 14 Nov. 2025
Yet the Jets' offense was again impotent.
—Andrew Greif, NBC news, 19 Oct. 2025
Ethics without efficiency are impotent.
—Karlo Tanjuakio, Forbes.com, 29 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for impotent
Jay Caspian Kang, New Yorker, 13 Jan. 2026
This unsettling thriller about impotent (emotionally, literally) university professor Ali (Turkish star Ekin Koç), on the path to vengeance after the suspicious death of his mother, scored strong reviews (including my own) and the World Cinema Directing Award out of the Utah festival.
—Ryan Lattanzio, IndieWire, 14 Nov. 2025
Yet the Jets' offense was again impotent.
—Andrew Greif, NBC news, 19 Oct. 2025
Ethics without efficiency are impotent.
—Karlo Tanjuakio, Forbes.com, 29 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for impotent
Recent Examples of Synonyms for impotent
Adjective
-
The result is a sterile carousel of clubs at the top.—
Megan Feringa,
New York Times,
27 May 2026
-
Visitors can see Mission Control, where teams watch every Mars landing live, and the sterile labs where the next generation of spacecraft are being built.—
Michael Goldstein,
Forbes.com,
26 May 2026
Adjective
-
Marine Rousseau, 41, was taken into custody Thursday with Marc Ballabriga, 55, two days after the couple allegedly dumped her helpless 3- and 5-year-old children in a remote forest and left, according to Portuguese and French media.—
Louis Casiano,
FOXNews.com,
26 May 2026
-
No electricity, ventilators In the ICU, nurse Tammy Fritchey feels helpless.—
Kansas City Star,
Kansas City Star,
22 May 2026
Adjective
-
The front of their single-story bungalow, though, remained a barren conundrum.—
The Washington Post,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
30 May 2026
-
Falling leaves or barren branches?—
Austin Meek,
New York Times,
29 May 2026
Adjective
-
Three All Saints Episcopal School students lured a fourth student to participate in a TikTok challenge this month that became a catastrophic assault, leaving the boy unconscious for several minutes, temporarily paralyzed and with fractured vertebrae, according to a lawsuit filed this week.—
Emerson Clarridge,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
29 May 2026
-
Samuelson has been left paralyzed from the chest down due to the bullet lodged in his spine.—
Todd Feurer,
CBS News,
27 May 2026
Adjective
-
As the story goes, attendance was weak, the weather was bad, and the tournament experience was just lacking.—
James Burky,
Denver Post,
29 May 2026
-
As many as 40 states combine one-party control with institutional barriers weak enough to fall to political pressure.—
Bruce Sibley,
Time,
29 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Impotent.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/impotent. Accessed 2 Jun. 2026.
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