as in draining
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as in weakening
to diminish the physical strength of
weeks of hard work had sapped her and left her exhausted
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Recent Examples of sapping
Michael Holtz, New Yorker, 5 Feb. 2026
Too many turnaround attempts see a CEO throwing spaghetti at the wall in the hopes something will work, further confusing the rank and file and sapping their confidence in management.
—Phil Wahba, Fortune, 30 Jan. 2026
Then his shoulder went, sidelining him for more than a month, sapping him of his explosiveness for the rest of the year.
—Matthew Futterman, New York Times, 26 Jan. 2026
The energy-sapping pace of the game, with furious pressing and frenzied chasing, saw mistakes creep in, with Morocco caught flat by Nicolas Jackson’s 38th-minute pass to Iliman Ndiaye, whose shot was saved by Bounou.
—Reuters, NBC news, 18 Jan. 2026
Fueling the surges are power-sapping data hubs — one is planned for 160 acres in Grayslake — and the growth of artificial intelligence.
—Charles Selle, Chicago Tribune, 12 Jan. 2026
To make matters worse, a gastrointestinal issue was sapping my strength.
—Tom Ward, Outside, 17 Nov. 2025
With some notable exceptions, bringing in an outsider can send the morale-sapping message that the board has lost confidence in its other executives, Sonnenfeld warned.
—Andrew Edgecliffe-Johnson, semafor.com, 14 Nov. 2025
Food shortages would mean the disappearance of luxuries and the rationing of staples, sapping public morale.
—Charlie Campbell, Time, 23 Oct. 2025
Verb
Seizing on the frigid weather, Russia has launched an all-out assault on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure, with the apparent aim of keeping up pressure amid ongoing peace negotiations—and sapping public morale.
—Michael Holtz, New Yorker, 5 Feb. 2026
Too many turnaround attempts see a CEO throwing spaghetti at the wall in the hopes something will work, further confusing the rank and file and sapping their confidence in management.
—Phil Wahba, Fortune, 30 Jan. 2026
Then his shoulder went, sidelining him for more than a month, sapping him of his explosiveness for the rest of the year.
—Matthew Futterman, New York Times, 26 Jan. 2026
The energy-sapping pace of the game, with furious pressing and frenzied chasing, saw mistakes creep in, with Morocco caught flat by Nicolas Jackson’s 38th-minute pass to Iliman Ndiaye, whose shot was saved by Bounou.
—Reuters, NBC news, 18 Jan. 2026
Fueling the surges are power-sapping data hubs — one is planned for 160 acres in Grayslake — and the growth of artificial intelligence.
—Charles Selle, Chicago Tribune, 12 Jan. 2026
To make matters worse, a gastrointestinal issue was sapping my strength.
—Tom Ward, Outside, 17 Nov. 2025
With some notable exceptions, bringing in an outsider can send the morale-sapping message that the board has lost confidence in its other executives, Sonnenfeld warned.
—Andrew Edgecliffe-Johnson, semafor.com, 14 Nov. 2025
Food shortages would mean the disappearance of luxuries and the rationing of staples, sapping public morale.
—Charlie Campbell, Time, 23 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for sapping
Adjective
-
Long periods of socializing, like a weeklong conference, can feel far more draining than shorter events.—
Big Think,
Big Think,
28 Oct. 2025
-
By aligning strategic work with those rhythms, productivity can feel more natural and less draining.—
Matthew Kayser,
USA Today,
28 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
But the big problem is why the dollar is weakening.—
Phillip Molnar,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
6 Feb. 2026
-
Nevertheless, proponents of the theory have suggested without evidence that the substation’s electromagnetic fields could be damaging players’ soft tissues and weakening their tendons.—
Aria Bendix,
NBC news,
5 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
However, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), even mild cases of measles can be severe and debilitating.—
Doris Alvarez Cea,
Florida Times-Union,
4 Feb. 2026
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Just south of those areas, a debilitating and destructive ice storm that will undoubtedly shut down airports and entire cities for days leaving millions without power.—
Terry Eliasen,
CBS News,
23 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Williams did not explicitly mention tennis, or any sport, in her Super Bowl advert for Ro, but her focus on movement and wellbeing in the context of her softening position on the possibility of a comeback was striking.—
James Hansen,
New York Times,
9 Feb. 2026
-
On most prestige shows, a friendship between two women from disparate backgrounds would serve as an emotional anchor, softening both characters.—
Inkoo Kang,
New Yorker,
9 Feb. 2026
Verb
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This low-budget-looking spot was way more successful than the company's previous 2000 Super Bowl ad, the one that bragged about wasting 2 million bucks while showing a monkey dancing on a bucket.—
Debby Wolfinsohn,
Entertainment Weekly,
8 Feb. 2026
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When Ali Ansari was 12, living with his family in a single room at his aunt’s house in Woodland Hills, his immigrant mother told him to stop wasting time staring at his phone and try making money with it.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
7 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Sapping.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/sapping. Accessed 14 Feb. 2026.
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