disqualify

[dis-kwol-uh-fahy]

verb (used with object)

disqualified, disqualifying 

1. to deprive of qualification or fitness; render unfit; incapacitate.

2. to deprive of legal, official, or other rights or privileges; declare ineligible or unqualified.

3. Sports.,  to deprive of the right to participate in or win a contest because of a violation of the rules.

disqualify

/ dɪsˈkwɒlɪˌfaɪ /

verb

1. to make unfit or unqualified

2. to make ineligible, as for entry to an examination

3. to debar (a player or team) from a sporting contest

4. to divest or deprive of rights, powers, or privileges

   disqualified from driving

Other Word Forms

• disqualifier noun
• disqualification noun
• disqualifiable adjective
• nondisqualifying adjective
• undisqualifiable adjective
• undisqualified adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of disqualify¹

First recorded in 1710–20; dis- ¹ + qualify

Example Sentences

In Paris, the U.S. women’s 4×100 relay won gold—but the men’s relay was disqualified after another botched handoff.

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He was also disqualified from driving for five years and eight months.

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“Ms. Chattah is disqualified from supervising these cases or any attorneys in the handling of these cases,” Campbell wrote.

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He was also disqualified from driving for at least two years and would need to take an extended driving test on release.

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The Georgia Supreme Court refused to hear her appeal on Tuesday, leaving in place a lower court’s ruling that disqualified her over her romantic relationship with a former special prosecutor.

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Related Words

• bar 
• exclude 
• invalidate 
• preclude 
• prohibit 
• rule out 
• suspend