1
as in pitiful
arousing or deserving of one's loathing and disgust
that's a pretty lame way to treat someone
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in unacceptable
falling short of a standard
the amenities at this hotel are lame; there's not even free Wi-Fi in the room
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in to cripple
to cause severe or permanent injury to
we were afraid that the horse would be lamed by its horrible fall
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of lame
Paul Tassi, Forbes.com, 13 Sep. 2025
Paine proposed a lump sum payment of £15 (£2,306 in 2025) to everyone reaching the age of twenty-one and a £10 (£1,537 in 2025) annual pension for the blind and lame, as well as for those fifty and older.
—Matthew Wills, JSTOR Daily, 7 Sep. 2025
Shootouts are lame in comparison.
—Chris Branch, New York Times, 19 Aug. 2025
On the other hand, Powell probably has little incentive to commit firmly given high lame-duck status and the fact that more employment and inflation numbers will hit before the September meeting.
—Michael Santoli, CNBC, 18 Aug. 2025
That s—t gonna be lame 10 years from now.
—Michael Saponara, Billboard, 6 Aug. 2025
The Democratic state Legislature in New York’s lame attempt to join them in undermining representative government will not work.
—New York Daily News Editorial Board, New York Daily News, 4 Aug. 2025
To put it in a different way, my life is pretty lame [laughs].
—José Criales-Unzueta, Vogue, 3 Feb. 2023
Well, this is so lame, but I'm almost finished watching The Sopranos for the very first time ever.
—Lauren Morgan, EW.com, 12 Oct. 2022
Bestreviews, Chicago Tribune, 19 Feb. 2025
There's nothing watery, limp, or lame about an onion boil.
—Melissa Gray, Southern Living, 21 Nov. 2024
And unlike other bread lames that don’t conceal the razor, this one opens and closes for maximum safety.
—Stephanie Osmanski, Better Homes & Gardens, 17 Feb. 2024
The question is, then, how can two lames convince the girls to look their way?
—Vulture, 6 June 2023
Adjective
Another main issue is that the power grind itself now being the endgame is no longer a good motivator to play, nor is the Tier system with 3s not much different than 4s or 5s, and all past weapons being somewhat lame now outside of that system entirely.
—Paul Tassi, Forbes.com, 13 Sep. 2025
Paine proposed a lump sum payment of £15 (£2,306 in 2025) to everyone reaching the age of twenty-one and a £10 (£1,537 in 2025) annual pension for the blind and lame, as well as for those fifty and older.
—Matthew Wills, JSTOR Daily, 7 Sep. 2025
Shootouts are lame in comparison.
—Chris Branch, New York Times, 19 Aug. 2025
On the other hand, Powell probably has little incentive to commit firmly given high lame-duck status and the fact that more employment and inflation numbers will hit before the September meeting.
—Michael Santoli, CNBC, 18 Aug. 2025
That s—t gonna be lame 10 years from now.
—Michael Saponara, Billboard, 6 Aug. 2025
The Democratic state Legislature in New York’s lame attempt to join them in undermining representative government will not work.
—New York Daily News Editorial Board, New York Daily News, 4 Aug. 2025
To put it in a different way, my life is pretty lame [laughs].
—José Criales-Unzueta, Vogue, 3 Feb. 2023
Well, this is so lame, but I'm almost finished watching The Sopranos for the very first time ever.
—Lauren Morgan, EW.com, 12 Oct. 2022
Verb
Additional accessories High-end proofing baskets can come with many other helpful accessories like scrapers, bonus lames and even instructional e-books or DVDs.
—Bestreviews, Chicago Tribune, 19 Feb. 2025
There's nothing watery, limp, or lame about an onion boil.
—Melissa Gray, Southern Living, 21 Nov. 2024
And unlike other bread lames that don’t conceal the razor, this one opens and closes for maximum safety.
—Stephanie Osmanski, Better Homes & Gardens, 17 Feb. 2024
The question is, then, how can two lames convince the girls to look their way?
—Vulture, 6 June 2023
Recent Examples of Synonyms for lame
Adjective
-
The Browns have scored the second-fewest points in the NFL, ahead of only the pitiful Tennessee Titans.—
Jason Lloyd,
New York Times,
28 Sep. 2025
-
On the side of the highway, Wilson cuts a pitiful, solitary figure.—
Dan Piepenbring,
Harpers Magazine,
19 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
Violence anywhere, especially in a place of worship, is unacceptable.—
James Bickerton,
MSNBC Newsweek,
3 Oct. 2025
-
Other Republicans — especially in the House — see it as an unacceptable expansion of President Barack Obama’s signature health care law, which Republicans have tried to eliminate or cut back since it was enacted 15 years ago.—
Preston Fore,
Fortune,
2 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Such a finding could’ve crippled the operations of Google, Meta and X, among various others.—
Winston Cho,
HollywoodReporter,
29 Sep. 2025
-
Given the right series of chances, players could potentially construct a build that blasts thunder and chains together static strikes that will cripple entire rooms of foes at once.—
Christopher Cruz,
Rolling Stone,
27 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
This World Cup wasn’t going to be cheap to attend, but these memories for life cost so much that swathes of people can’t even toy with the idea.—
Phil Hay,
New York Times,
2 Oct. 2025
-
Utility executives and analysts have said clean energy projects are crucial to help power new data centers and factories, because they can be built quickly and produce electricity that is relatively cheap.—
Michael Copley,
NPR,
2 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
Similar protests occurred in Brazil over steep living costs and poor healthcare and education ahead of the country hosting the 2014 World Cup tournament.—
Connor Greene,
Time,
2 Oct. 2025
-
Over time, dysfunctional breathing reinforces poor posture and scapular instability.—
Dana Santas,
CNN Money,
2 Oct. 2025
Verb
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One caller said a delta-8 gummy incapacitated their adult son for several hours.—
Gina Lee Castro,
jsonline.com,
3 Oct. 2025
-
Lorenzo confronts and incapacitates Pepe, Sonia’s main ally, before facing Sonia herself.—
Isabella Wandermurem,
Time,
24 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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For both areas, Painter hit the transfer portal and landed a dirty-work center in Cluff.—
CJ Moore,
New York Times,
30 Sep. 2025
-
Far from a knightly war, the German advance in 1941-1942 against France was a dirty one, with thieving of private property and menace against civilians.—
Christopher C. Gorham
September 29,
Literary Hub,
29 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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There’s something wrong with them right away.—
Stephanie Nolasco,
FOXNews.com,
5 Oct. 2025
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Mike McDaniel said Wright did nothing wrong, but Miami needed more bodies on defense and special teams.—
Barry Jackson,
Miami Herald,
5 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Lame.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/lame. Accessed 6 Oct. 2025.
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