Meaning & use

inoperative

adjective·Academic

Not working or functioning; no longer in effect.

See it in a sentence

The elevator has been inoperative since the power outage last week.

The old law became inoperative once the new legislation was passed.

A note on using this word

Used for machines that have stopped working and, in formal or legal contexts, for rules no longer in force.

Words with a similar meaning

nonfunctional

Choose a synonym to suit the sentence. Meanings can overlap without being identical.

Words with an opposite meaning

operativefunctional

Make it your own

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