kaput

adjective

kə-ˈpu̇t How to pronounce kaput (audio)
variants also kaputt
Definition of kaputnext
1
as in done
facing certain defeat, disaster, or death once the Germans were forced to retreat from Stalingrad, the Nazi cause was kaput

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2
as in obsolete
having passed its time of use or usefulness hard-line Soviet-style Communism became kaput in Russia

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in malfunctioning
not being in working order the heating system went kaput on the coldest day of the year

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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 kaput The chase for a third consecutive World Series championship is historically and essentially and practically kaput. — Los Angeles Times, 15 Oct. 2026 But with the continuing demand for sport utility vehicles and pickup trucks, executive cruisers and road trip comfort mobiles are largely kaput. — James Raia, Mercury News, 26 July 2026 Gunn tells Deadline, that The Authority is not kaput. — Anthony D'alessandro, Deadline, 27 Sep. 2025 Kelly Reilly, who plays Beth Dutton, seems adamant that the OG Yellowstone is kaput. — Bethy Squires, Vulture, 15 Dec. 2024 Now all three of those competitors are kaput, felled by runs on deposits during the biggest banking crisis in a decade and a half. — Rob Copeland, New York Times, 14 June 2023 The Stooges are now functionally kaput—of the original lineup, only Pop is left. — Amanda Petrusich, The New Yorker, 26 Aug. 2019 At least not on Sunday afternoon, nearly a full two days after the Clippers were supposed to be done, finished, as kaput as the Kings – those in Sacramento and Los Angeles. — Jeff Miller, Orange County Register, 29 Apr. 2017 The damages for that less-than-brilliant marketing idea could be as much as $120 million, meaning the company as a whole is pretty much financially kaput. — Susan Arendt, WIRED, 14 Mar. 2007
Recent Examples of Synonyms for kaput
  1. doomed
  2. obsolete
  3. malfunctioning
  4. ruined
  5. archaic
  6. down
  7. sunk
  8. antiquated
Adjective
  • This housing raid would put roughly 150,000 homes under the government’s control — about seven percent of Berlin’s housing supply — in what would no doubt be a doomed effort to curb rising rents.
    — Editorial Board, Washington Post, 22 Oct. 2026
  • Skerritt originally turned down the role as Captain Dallas of the doomed spacecraft Nostromo in Alien (1979) after fearing that the film’s budget would be consumed by special effects.
    — Chris Koseluk, HollywoodReporter, 22 Oct. 2026
Definition of doomed
Adjective
  • Whether machines can make conventional money obsolete remains an open question.
    — Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 20 Oct. 2026
  • Advertisement That prescription has rankled many cybersecurity experts who scoff at the possibility that their expertise will be rendered obsolete.
    — Harry Booth, Time, 20 Oct. 2026
Definition of obsolete
Adjective
  • Riders had to evacuate its log ride on seven separate occasions because of issues such as boats colliding or becoming jammed and smoke coming from a malfunctioning part of the ride.
    — Blake Ellis, CNN Money, 15 Oct. 2026
  • Homeowners reported a swift meeting at which officers discussed a reorganization of their specific duties and the hiring of an elevator expert to fix the chronically malfunctioning, overloaded elevators.
    — Linda Robertson, Miami Herald, 15 Aug. 2026
Definition of malfunctioning
Adjective
  • Sitting on the rim of his consciousness was always cataclysm, the muted whisper of a ruined world.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 10 July 2026
Definition of ruined
Adjective
  • In our era of incessant texting, the concept of these radio missives struck me as both archaic and romantic.
    — Jordan Salama, New Yorker, 12 Oct. 2026
  • The archaic legal restrictions restricting same-sex couples or unmarried women, for example, are acknowledged and adhered to, rather than being openly challenged or criticized.
    — Guy Lodge, Variety, 11 Oct. 2026
Definition of archaic
Adjective
  • In Tarrant County, there’s a slate of down ballot candidates, including a race for county judge.
    — Eleanor Dearman, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 22 Oct. 2026
  • Improvement from 2025 counts most, but the formula also considers previous years to discourage rewarding traditionally strong teams that simply bounce back from a down year.
    — Todd Holcomb, AJC.com, 20 Oct. 2026
Definition of down
Adjective
  • Poor Stuart’s capable and patient efforts come to nothing, because Hal is in a snit and seems to be suffering an acute case of sunk cost fallacy-itis.
    — Sophie Brookover, Vulture, 17 Oct. 2026
  • The train is, of course, a classic example of the perennial perils of sunk costs; abandoning the line seems absurd (even to us) given how much money would be written off.
    — The Editorial Board, Chicago Tribune, 20 Aug. 2026
Definition of sunk
Adjective
  • According to firefighters, the department’s flood response was also limited by an antiquated dispatch system.
    — Abe Streep, ProPublica, 21 Oct. 2026
  • Plaintiffs challenging the prohibition on home distilling claim the 1868 law is an antiquated relic of Reconstruction-era politics.
    — Michael Kunzelman, Fortune, 19 Oct. 2026
Definition of antiquated

Browse Nearby Words

kaolins
kaput
karakul
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Cite this Entry

“Kaput.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/kaput. Accessed 28 Oct. 2026.

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