petrify

verb

ˈpe-trə-ˌfī How to pronounce petrify (audio)
Definition of petrifynext
as in to undermine
to deprive of emotional or intellectual vitality groupthink and peer pressure have so petrified the thinking of the company's top brass that they haven't produced an innovative product in years

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of petrify In group chats and meetings, Republicans are privately petrified the Iran war could cost them the midterms. — Elizabeth Robinson, NBC news, 16 Apr. 2026 The filmmaker leans pop-comic rather than petrifying in his final draft, opting for earnestness that smothers atmospheric dread. — Alison Foreman, IndieWire, 6 Feb. 2026 The former slingshots between harmony and hysteria; the latter petrifies its beauty under a haze of ashy gray powder. — Jazz Monroe, Pitchfork, 28 Nov. 2025 You'll be petrified by the violence inflicted upon boys who only wanted a chance to pull their families out of financial duress and have an opportunity at a comfortable life afforded to most of us sitting in our seats. — Haadiza Ogwude, The Enquirer, 13 Sep. 2025 See All Example Sentences for petrify
Recent Examples of Synonyms for petrify
  1. undermine
  2. weaken
  3. drain
  4. desiccate
  5. exhaust
  6. dehydrate
  7. enervate
  8. castrate
Verb
  • But supporters also warned that a Congress increasingly dominated by the far right and the agribusiness caucus could undermine those efforts to protect the forest and combat climate change.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 27 Oct. 2026
  • The senator challenged Supreme Federal Court Justice Cristiano Zanin’s decision to extend voting by two hours, arguing that the uneven application of the measure had undermined equal voting conditions.
    — Alessandra Freitas, CNN Money, 26 Oct. 2026
Definition of undermine
Verb
  • The regime remains capable of suppressing any organized resistance in the country, but the growing disaffection of the elite threatens to weaken the state from within.
    — Jieun Baek, Foreign Affairs, 30 Oct. 2026
  • Eisenkot's allies could also try to reverse legislation advanced by Netanyahu's government that critics say weakened Israel's democratic institutions and judicial independence.
    — Itay Stern, NPR, 30 Oct. 2026
Definition of weaken
Verb
  • Some alluvial and floodplain soils can drain well and appear quite dry, yet still meet Connecticut’s definition of an inland wetland.
    — Dr. Avishesh Neupane, Hartford Courant, 1 Nov. 2026
  • Fuel that smells sour, appears darker than usual, or shows signs of separation should be drained from the lawn mower and disposed of properly, instead of combined with new fuel.
    — Timothy Dale, The Spruce, 31 Oct. 2026
Definition of drain
Verb
  • In the Rocky Mountains, years of extreme heat and drought have baked the landscape, drying up streams that feed the Colorado River and desiccating pastures where cattle graze.
    — Ian James, Los Angeles Times, 5 Sep. 2026
  • Strewn around the edges of the room are ceramic casts of the pocked fruit, brown and desiccated like a pile of skulls.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 5 Aug. 2026
Definition of desiccate
Verb
  • When all out-of-court options have been exhausted, and the MCA debt threatens the immediate survival of an otherwise viable business, legal reorganization is the final angle of management.
    — Nathan Mor, Forbes.com, 26 Oct. 2026
  • Like athletes in other pro leagues, NFL players must first exhaust out-of-court arbitration and grievance procedures.
    — Michael McCann, Sportico.com, 26 Oct. 2026
Definition of exhaust
Verb
  • Mums easily dehydrate, which leads to brown, crunchy foliage and flower buds.
    — Brandee Gruener, Southern Living, 20 Oct. 2026
  • Most people wake mildly dehydrated after six to eight hours of sleep, dietitians and endocrinologists say.
    — Hanna Wickes, Kansas City Star, 15 Oct. 2026
Definition of dehydrate
Verb
  • Such flat, enervating filmmaking makes the whole endeavor a shockingly cynical affair.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 22 Oct. 2026
  • Its students arrive morally outraged, a priori puritans, while its professors are enervated and dissatisfied.
    — Zain Khalid, Vulture, 1 Oct. 2026
Definition of enervate
Verb
  • This is the league, remember, where a man (Harvey Updyke) confessed to poisoning the trees at Auburn on a radio show after Alabama lost to the Tigers, and a coach (Jackie Sherrill at Mississippi State) castrated a bull to motivate his squad.
    — Dana O’Neil, CNN Money, 4 Sep. 2026
  • Those expectations got castrated because of last season’s early struggles.
    — Omar Kelly, Miami Herald, 24 July 2026
Definition of castrate

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Cite this Entry

“Petrify.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/petrify. Accessed 2 Nov. 2026.

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