Meaning & use
incapacitate
Last updated
To deprive someone of strength or ability, making them unable to function normally.
See it in a sentence
A single blow to the knee was enough to incapacitate the attacker.
The chronic illness gradually incapacitated her ability to work full-time.
A note on using this word
Often used in legal, medical, and security contexts to describe temporarily or permanently removing someone's ability to act.
Words with a similar meaning
disabledebilitate
Choose a synonym to suit the sentence. Meanings can overlap without being identical.
Words with an opposite meaning
enablestrengthen
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