1
as in malfunctioning
not being in working order
we have several inoperable cars on the property
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2
as in useless
not capable of being put to use or account
a delightfully creative but inoperable plan for building a theme park in the area
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Recent Examples of inoperable
The swim began July 26 at the spot in the water where the freighter’s journey ended, 17 miles northwest of the Whitefish Point lighthouse, which in fatal happenstance was inoperable the night of the ship’s sinking.
—
John Carlisle, Freep.com, 11 Aug. 2025
Then, last year, my dude-friend died at 43 from Stage 4 Colorectal cancer—his family ordered wings at Hooters after his funeral—and at the end of May, my girl-dude friend was diagnosed with stage 4 inoperable cervical cancer at age 41.
—Jay Deitcher, Time, 6 Aug. 2025
The plant remains inoperable due to the flooding to Nimitz Lake and its impact on the intake equipment, and other areas within.
—Hollie Silverman, MSNBC Newsweek, 29 July 2025
Going in to a subsequent demo, a problem with the antenna rendered the device inoperable until Park fixed it by attaching a piece of foam to the circuit board.
—Brian Santo, IEEE Spectrum, 7 Nov. 2019
See All Example Sentences for inoperable
John Carlisle, Freep.com, 11 Aug. 2025
Then, last year, my dude-friend died at 43 from Stage 4 Colorectal cancer—his family ordered wings at Hooters after his funeral—and at the end of May, my girl-dude friend was diagnosed with stage 4 inoperable cervical cancer at age 41.
—Jay Deitcher, Time, 6 Aug. 2025
The plant remains inoperable due to the flooding to Nimitz Lake and its impact on the intake equipment, and other areas within.
—Hollie Silverman, MSNBC Newsweek, 29 July 2025
Going in to a subsequent demo, a problem with the antenna rendered the device inoperable until Park fixed it by attaching a piece of foam to the circuit board.
—Brian Santo, IEEE Spectrum, 7 Nov. 2019
See All Example Sentences for inoperable
Recent Examples of Synonyms for inoperable
Adjective
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This method is a significant departure from traditional chemical recycling techniques like pyrolysis, which operate at lower temperatures (450–600°C) and produce over a hundred different by-products, many of which are useless.—
Aman Tripathi,
Interesting Engineering,
3 Sep. 2025
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Economists usually look at new jobs, but immigration is now very low, making that figure useless as a measure of how the economy is doing.—
Bill Conerly,
Forbes.com,
30 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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For her, the loss of $40 isn’t the real issue, but rather the broken trust and the strange turn the situation has taken.—
Ashley Vega,
PEOPLE,
4 Sep. 2025
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As the family unravels, Genevieve must summon the courage to save her broken family – and herself – but not without a cost.—
Max Goldbart,
Deadline,
4 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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But, because mange often accompanies secondary infections and nutritional imbalances, treatment in the wild is impractical, making the work at Walden's Puddle and other rehabilitation facilities all the more important, Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency Communications Manager Jason Harmon said.—
Katie Nixon,
Nashville Tennessean,
5 Sep. 2025
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The internet faced ridicule for its impractical nature during its initial development phase.—
Sadhasivam Mohanadas,
Forbes.com,
3 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
Springer transformed from payroll anchor to potential down-ballot MVP candidate.—
Mitch Bannon,
New York Times,
4 Sep. 2025
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Season 4 ended on a bit of a down note, with a major character death, and lots of family trouble for River Cartwright to navigate.—
Erik Kain,
Forbes.com,
3 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
The website is almost unusable.—
Matt Zoller Seitz,
Vulture,
4 Sep. 2025
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The process requires hundreds of delicate manual steps, and any contamination renders a dose unusable.—
Jennifer Kite-Powell,
Forbes.com,
31 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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Also inoperative the morning of the crash were the runway alignment indicator lights, which had not worked for more than three years.—
Karen Kucher,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
19 June 2025
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But India, citing national security concerns, has publicly provided little evidence linking the attack to Pakistan, which denies involvement and says that Lashkar-e-Taiba is largely inoperative.—
Zia ur-Rehman,
New York Times,
29 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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Smaller vehicles can also use the old Kongevei (King’s Road) in Levanger, but authorities have warned that this route is unsuitable for heavy traffic.—
David Nikel,
Forbes.com,
30 Aug. 2025
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The drastic drop in performance from the 2022 season points to the idea that the current generation of cars is unsuitable for the Briton.—
Saajan Jogia,
MSNBC Newsweek,
27 Aug. 2025
Adjective
-
When heading out to look for lamps, take a lightbulb along to test them in-store, but also consider rewiring nonfunctional pieces.—
Jennifer Prince,
Southern Living,
17 Aug. 2025
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Lutnick was about to fly to London for a round of trade negotiations with China, whose restrictions on the sale of rare-earth metals were threatening to render parts of the American economy nonfunctional.—
Antonia Hitchens,
New Yorker,
21 July 2025
Cite this Entry
“Inoperable.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/inoperable. Accessed 8 Sep. 2025.
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