crippled
Americanadjective
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Offensive.
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relating to a person who is partially or totally unable to use one or more limbs.
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relating to a person who is disabled or impaired in any way.
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not operating or performing at the customary level; impaired; weakened.
Significant progress has been made in repairing the crippled power plant.
A telecommunications firm has signed a deal to get their crippled company back in business.
Sensitive Note
Why is crippled offensive? See cripple ( def. ).
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of crippled
First recorded in 1300–50; cripple ( def. ) (verb) + -ed 2 ( def. )
Explanation
When something is crippled, it's not working properly. Your bike might be crippled by the broken front brake that won't let the wheel turn freely. You can used the adjective crippled to talk about a broken machine or a process that's not working the way it should. It was once commonly used to describe a physically disabled person, but this has become an offensive term and should be avoided. The word crippled comes from the Old English crypel, which is related to cryppan, "to crook or to bend."
Vocabulary lists containing crippled
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
“We were promised Black jobs, Black dollars and an economic boost to Crenshaw, but businesses have been crippled one by one,” Shorter said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 14, 2026
Mainland investors have been seeking to diversify their holdings in recent years as a debt crisis has crippled the Chinese property sector, long viewed as a safe bet to park assets, analysts told AFP.
From Barron's ● Jul. 3, 2026
In downtown L.A., vandalism, shuttered storefronts and post-COVID abandonment have crippled what was a vibrant, revenue-generating economy that benefited the whole city.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 13, 2026
It crippled education as thousands of teachers left their roles, and students like Ma Naw Phaw refused to enrol in junta-controlled schools.
From BBC ● Jun. 12, 2026
“My seared vision! My crippled strength!” he murmured regretfully.
From "Jane Eyre" by Charlotte Brontë
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
