1
as in disabled
affected with paralysis
special ramps for paralyzed people in wheelchairs
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in helpless
unable to act or achieve one's purpose
a seemingly paralyzed mayor sat by as the city's crime rate soared
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in crippled
to render powerless, ineffective, or unable to move
a blizzard paralyzed the city for two days
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in frightened
to deprive of courage or confidence
the school board is paralyzed by the threat of lawsuits for just about everything
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of paralyzed
Eric McDaniel,
NPR,
14 June 2026
Your stomach isn’t literally paralyzed — but it’s slowed down enough to cause real problems.
—
Ryan Brennan,
Sacbee.com,
13 June 2026
Antonio María Delgado,
Miami Herald,
23 June 2026
The tranquil normalcy of a residential neighborhood in the Canadian city of Montreal was shattered Monday morning after a gunman opened fire, prompting a shootout with police that killed at least two people, sent families running for cover and paralyzed the city for hours.
—
Lex Harvey,
CNN Money,
22 June 2026
See All Example Sentences for paralyzed
Adjective
McConnell has always appeared to have a somewhat unsteady gate — a childhood bout of polio left him with a partially paralyzed leg.
—
Eric McDaniel,
NPR,
14 June 2026
Your stomach isn’t literally paralyzed — but it’s slowed down enough to cause real problems.
—
Ryan Brennan,
Sacbee.com,
13 June 2026
Verb
Traffic is gradually returning to Bolivia’s highways after President Rodrigo Paz declared a state of emergency and deployed military and police forces to dismantle roadblocks that had paralyzed large parts of the country for more than seven weeks.
—
Antonio María Delgado,
Miami Herald,
23 June 2026
The tranquil normalcy of a residential neighborhood in the Canadian city of Montreal was shattered Monday morning after a gunman opened fire, prompting a shootout with police that killed at least two people, sent families running for cover and paralyzed the city for hours.
—
Lex Harvey,
CNN Money,
22 June 2026
See All Example Sentences for paralyzed
Recent Examples of Synonyms for paralyzed
Adjective
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The Dodge became disabled, and the troopers arrested the driver.
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Homeless residents, many of whom don’t have a car or are disabled, now have to travel outside of Skid Row to get stamps or mail a package.
Adjective
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The leading interpretation is that Smilodon delivered a single precise bite to the throat or belly, severing something vital in a target that was already helpless.
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Pele controls the ball in the penalty area with his thigh, flips it over the head of the defender and smashes it past a helpless Kalle Svensson.
Verb
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In the nation’s gravest hour, the country’s authoritarian regime has crippled an effective response, say survivors, rescue workers and former officials.
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This comes at a dire time for Venezuela, which is still deep in political and financial crisis – being led by an interim government after US forces captured President Nicolás Maduro earlier this year, and facing an economy crippled by years of hyperinflation.
Verb
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At the time of writing, as the Marine Traffic map shows, tanker traffic is barely moving through the Strait, and many ships, unable to obtain insurance or with their owners frightened at the level of risk involved, are refusing to advance.
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But because the president has frightened Congress, Congress doesn’t raise its voice when the president puts his Albert Speer–like building project, or intends to, on Congress’s land.
Adjective
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Assuming that the account in her journal is true, her father goes out and drinks himself into a ‘paralytic’ state.
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He was injected with the three-drug mix of an anesthetic, a paralytic and potassium acetate, which stops the heart.
Adjective
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Following a year of historically weak hiring in 2025, hiring rebounded this spring.
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In a weak free-agency class, centers Robert Williams III (Portland) and Mark Williams (Phoenix) are already off the market, each reportedly agreeing to return to their current teams.
Verb
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There's an apocryphal story about its creations; supposedly Kryptonite was invented so Superman's voice actor Bud Collyer could take vacations while the Man of Steel was incapacitated.
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Airbus UpNext's DragonFly project is developing AI that manages complex emergencies autonomously when the crew is incapacitated.
Verb
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The trailer teases Aaron Taylor-Johnson as the titular creature, who undergoes an intense transformation that leaves the townspeople terrified.
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Supporters — many of them wearing Colombia’s yellow and red colors — rushed the gates at the home stadium of the NFL’s Miami Dolphins, leaving fans terrified and bloodied as security struggled to contain the rush.
Cite this Entry
“Paralyzed.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/paralyzed. Accessed 6 Jul. 2026.
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