paralyze

verb

ˈper-ə-ˌlīz How to pronounce paralyze (audio)
Definition of paralyzenext
1
as in to cripple
to render powerless, ineffective, or unable to move a blizzard paralyzed the city for two days

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to intimidate
to deprive of courage or confidence the school board is paralyzed by the threat of lawsuits for just about everything

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for paralyze
  1. cripple
  2. intimidate
  3. incapacitate
  4. frighten
  5. undermine
  6. terrify
  7. weaken
  8. scare
Verb
  • The destruction of South Korea’s memory chip fabs would compound this tragedy and cripple the global economy.
    — Dan Blumenthal, Washington Post, 27 Oct. 2026
  • Mendel argued that Zelenskyy's promise to bring peace at the time stands in stark contrast to the devastating war that has crippled the country and defined much of his presidency.
    — Emma Bussey, FOXNews.com, 25 Oct. 2026
Definition of cripple
Verb
  • Politicians could no longer rely on local patrons to intimidate people into voting for them and had to compete on representing their interests.
    — Asim Ali, Time, 24 Oct. 2026
  • Drivers who intimidate on purpose are surprisingly plentiful.
    — Staff Report, Hartford Courant, 22 Oct. 2026
Definition of intimidate
Verb
  • Yandex has run drills for an accident that could incapacitate one of its six data centers, but it was caught unprepared when its three key facilities were hit over four days.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 22 Oct. 2026
  • Now, a poisonous residue on the same crowbar has left him incapacitated.
    — Scott Tobias, Vulture, 21 Oct. 2026
Definition of incapacitate
Verb
  • For Cox and Walker, the challenge was to introduce horror-film conventions without frightening the franchise’s youngest viewers.
    — Scott Roxborough, HollywoodReporter, 22 Oct. 2026
  • Guitarricadelafuente said he was initially frightened by the prospect of acting in La Bola Negra.
    — Destiny Jackson, Deadline, 21 Oct. 2026
Definition of frighten
Verb
  • But supporters also warned that a Congress increasingly dominated by the far right and the agribusiness caucus could undermine those efforts to protect the forest and combat climate change.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 27 Oct. 2026
  • The senator challenged Supreme Federal Court Justice Cristiano Zanin’s decision to extend voting by two hours, arguing that the uneven application of the measure had undermined equal voting conditions.
    — Alessandra Freitas, CNN Money, 26 Oct. 2026
Definition of undermine
Verb
  • No wonder Dad had been terrified of making a mistake, of relaxing or trusting others enough to let his guard down.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 26 Oct. 2026
  • Now a ruthless emperor, Paul must face the consequences of his reign as old allies return, terrifying new threats emerge and betrayal lurks in every shadow.
    — Clayton Davis, Variety, 23 Oct. 2026
Definition of terrify
Verb
  • Conditions were expected to improve Saturday afternoon as winds weakened, with fair and dry weather forecast for the remainder of the weekend.
    — Sacbee.com, Sacbee.com, 23 Oct. 2026
  • As trust in America weakens further, other wealthy nations will make the same calculation.
    — Fareed Zakaria, Washington Post, 23 Oct. 2026
Definition of weaken
Verb
  • The white whale of American politics seemed in reach until the president spent two years scaring it away.
    — Gabe Fleisher, Washington Post, 26 Oct. 2026
  • El-Sayed is a handy bogeyman for Republican politicians who seek to scare their constituents into voting for them instead of the foreboding Arab name on the ballot.
    — Lorraine Ali, Los Angeles Times, 23 Oct. 2026
Definition of scare
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.

Browse Nearby Words

paralytic
paralyze
paralyzed
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Paralyze.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/paralyze. Accessed 29 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of shindig

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Pwn, Skibidi, Girlboss and Other Words Added to the 2026 Scrabble Dictionary

The Words of the Week - Oct. 30

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
different halloween monsters in silhouette
A Monstrous Vocab Quiz Words That Go Bump in the Night
See All