cripple

verb

Definition of cripplenext
1
as in to incapacitate
to cause severe or permanent injury to the car crash may have crippled two people for life

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to injure
to reduce the soundness, effectiveness, or perfection of the collision so severely crippled the ship that it had to be towed into port

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in to paralyze
to render powerless, ineffective, or unable to move a wave of strikes crippled that nation's steel industry

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Synonym Chooser

How does the verb cripple contrast with its synonyms?

Some common synonyms of cripple are batter, maim, mangle, and mutilate. While all these words mean "to injure so severely as to cause lasting damage," cripple implies the loss or serious impairment of an arm or leg.

crippled for life in an accident

Where would batter be a reasonable alternative to cripple?

While in some cases nearly identical to cripple, batter implies a series of blows that bruise deeply, deform, or mutilate.

an old ship battered by fierce storms

In what contexts can maim take the place of cripple?

The words maim and cripple can be used in similar contexts, but maim implies the loss or injury of a bodily member through violence.

maimed by a shark

When is mangle a more appropriate choice than cripple?

Although the words mangle and cripple have much in common, mangle implies a tearing or crushing that leaves deep wounds.

a soldier's leg mangled by shrapnel

When can mutilate be used instead of cripple?

While the synonyms mutilate and cripple are close in meaning, mutilate implies the cutting off or removal of an essential part of a person or thing thereby impairing its completeness, beauty, or function.

a tree mutilated by inept pruning

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 cripple That crippled Huawei’s smartphone brand, once one of the world’s biggest. — Joe McDonald, ajc, 9 Mar. 2023 Soon after, sanctions crippled the banking sector, food prices soared, and hospitals filled with malnourished children. — Christina Goldbaum, BostonGlobe.com, 27 Feb. 2023 Soon after, sanctions crippled the banking sector, food prices soared and hospitals filled with malnourished children. — Yaqoob Akbary Kiana Hayeri, New York Times, 27 Feb. 2023 If nothing is done, this could cripple the ISS. — Kay Bailey Hutchison and Jane Harman, WSJ, 16 Aug. 2022 See All Example Sentences for cripple
Recent Examples of Synonyms for cripple
  1. incapacitate
  2. injure
  3. paralyze
  4. disable
  5. damage
  6. undermine
  7. wound
  8. mar
Verb
  • Unlike snakes that rely on camouflage and venom yield to incapacitate prey, the black mamba’s strategy is shock-and-awe defense.
    — Scott Travers, Forbes.com, 29 Mar. 2025
  • If she was incapacitated by a crash, her car could’ve veered into the river.
    — Gloria Casas, Chicago Tribune, 26 Mar. 2025
Definition of incapacitate
Verb
  • One person was injured and transported to Shock Trauma, fire officials said.
    — Michelle Deal-Zimmerman, Baltimore Sun, 28 Mar. 2025
  • Russian drone attacks overnight injured at least 18 people in the Kharkiv region and three people in Dnipro, officials said.
    — Time, Time, 27 Mar. 2025
Definition of injure
Verb
  • Financial markets have crashed, consumers are frightened, and deals are paralyzed.
    — Paul Du Quenoy, MSNBC Newsweek, 26 Mar. 2025
  • When Gordon approached Rudolph to write and direct a music video for Teddy Pendergrass, who had recently been paralyzed in a car crash, Rudolph saw an opportunity.
    — Jim Hemphill, IndieWire, 25 Mar. 2025
Definition of paralyze
Verb
  • This marks the fifth such system disabled by the USF units in the past month.
    — Paul Du Quenoy, MSNBC Newsweek, 26 Mar. 2025
  • Witnesses told Fort Worth police that an initial accident disabled two cars, and then there was a second crash when an oncoming vehicle hit one of the disabled cars.
    — Shambhavi Rimal, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 23 Mar. 2025
Definition of disable
Verb
  • Waging war on Denmark is wrong and will damage U.S. defense and foreign relations for decades We Americans should be ashamed of ourselves and of our government.
    — Edward Lotterman, Twin Cities, 29 Mar. 2025
  • The storm brought 138 mph winds, according to the National Weather Service, damaging hundreds of homes and businesses.
    — Devyn Byers, CNN Money, 29 Mar. 2025
Definition of damage
Verb
  • The talks are set to take place amid concerns that the Kremlin is weaponizing ceasefire negotiations to delay and undermine negotiations for a settlement to the war.
    — Thomas G. Moukawsher, Newsweek, 22 Mar. 2025
  • You will be expected to trust your agents, for the alternative would be micromanagement, and that would undermine the whole process.
    — Jaron Lanier, The New Yorker, 22 Mar. 2025
Definition of undermine
Verb
  • The strike hit the surgical building of Nasser Hospital in the city of Khan Yunis, the ministry said, days after the facility was overwhelmed with the dead and wounded when Israel resumed the war in Gaza last week with a surprise wave of airstrikes.
    — Wafaa Shurafa and Samy Magdy, Los Angeles Times, 23 Mar. 2025
  • Authorities said that Taylor’s sons, Josiah Hooker, 8, and a 5-year-old found a loaded 9mm Smith and Wesson semiautomatic handgun on a television stand that Taylor had left unattended at the family home in the 1400 block of East 71st Place when they were both wounded around 5:20 p.m. on Thursday.
    — William Lee, Chicago Tribune, 22 Mar. 2025
Definition of wound
Verb
  • The transition has been marred by ongoing disagreements, political tensions, infighting and what security experts describe as a lack of a cohesive strategy for fighting the gangs.
    — Jacqueline Charles, Miami Herald, 24 Mar. 2025
  • What Happened On March 8? The SAT, a cornerstone of college admissions, was marred by technical and administrative issues on test day.
    — Scott White, Forbes, 19 Mar. 2025
Definition of mar

Browse Nearby Words

crinkling
cripple
crippled
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Cripple.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cripple. Accessed 7 Apr. 2025.

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