1
as in paralyzing
to render powerless, ineffective, or unable to move
the malfunctioning of a single component can incapacitate the engine
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in crippling
to cause severe or permanent injury to
the stroke left her completely incapacitated
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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Recent Examples of incapacitating
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
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
Recent Examples of Synonyms for incapacitating
Verb
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Doctors spent several minutes resuscitating Luka before making the difficult decision to use a paralyzing agent to stop him from moving and potentially hurting himself.—
Alyce Collins,
MSNBC Newsweek,
7 Sep. 2025
-
Without these supports, free-will can feel utterly paralyzing.—
Mark Travers,
Forbes.com,
6 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Thomas’ absence has been crippling for the Giants in recent years.—
Pat Leonard,
New York Daily News,
19 Aug. 2025
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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
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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
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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
Verb
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A student who authorities say opened fire at his Colorado high school, wounding two classmates and then turning the gun on himself, has died, according to the local sheriff's office.—
Alex Stone,
ABC News,
11 Sep. 2025
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Police say Reed then opened fire in the parking lot, killing Jones, wounding a 23-year-old Dallas man and also shooting at off-duty officers who were working at the business.—
Shambhavi Rimal,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
10 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Colorado Springs club shooting A 22-year-old gunman entered an LGBTQ nightclub in November 2022 in Colorado Springs shortly before midnight and immediately opened fire, killing at least five people and injuring 25 others before patrons confronted and stopped him, police said.—
Ray Sanchez,
CNN Money,
11 Sep. 2025
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The suspect was indicted by a federal grand jury in July and is also accused of shooting and injuring another state lawmaker and his wife earlier the same day.—
Kinsey Crowley,
USA Today,
11 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Incapacitating.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/incapacitating. Accessed 14 Sep. 2025.
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