deactivate
verb
de·ac·ti·vate
(ˌ)dē-ˈak-tə-ˌvāt 
deactivated; deactivating; deactivates
: to make inactive or ineffective
deactivate a bomb
deactivate a chemical compound
Examples of deactivate in a Sentence
deactivate the machine carefully, or you'll risk an electric shock
Recent Examples on the Web
The government initially reported more than 5 million children had accounts removed, deactivated or restricted after the ban became law.
—
ABC News,
3 July 2026
Remember, millions of social media accounts were deactivated.
—
John Tamny,
Forbes.com,
1 July 2026
To prevent the organs from being rejected by their new human hosts, Revivicor deactivated a gene that codes for the enzyme that creates the alpha-gal molecule.
—
Burkhard Bilger,
New Yorker,
29 June 2026
More than 5 million accounts have been deactivated since the ban came into effect in December.
—
Ainslie Chandler,
Fortune,
27 June 2026
See All Example Sentences for deactivate
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ABC News,
3 July 2026
Remember, millions of social media accounts were deactivated.
—
John Tamny,
Forbes.com,
1 July 2026
To prevent the organs from being rejected by their new human hosts, Revivicor deactivated a gene that codes for the enzyme that creates the alpha-gal molecule.
—
Burkhard Bilger,
New Yorker,
29 June 2026
More than 5 million accounts have been deactivated since the ban came into effect in December.
—
Ainslie Chandler,
Fortune,
27 June 2026
See All Example Sentences for deactivate
Cite this Entry
“Deactivate.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/deactivate. Accessed 7 Jul. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
Medical Definition
deactivate
transitive verb
de·ac·ti·vate
(ˈ)dē-ˈak-tə-ˌvāt
deactivated; deactivating
1
: to make inactive or ineffective
2
: to deprive of chemical activity
deactivate an enzyme
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