sabotage
Americannoun
-
any underhand interference with production, work, etc., in a plant, factory, etc., as by enemy agents during wartime or by employees during a trade dispute.
-
any undermining of a cause.
verb (used with object)
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sabotages,
present (3rd person singular)
-
sabotaged,
past participle, past
-
sabotaging
present participle
noun
-
the deliberate destruction, disruption, or damage of equipment, a public service, etc, as by enemy agents, dissatisfied employees, etc
-
any similar action or behaviour
verb
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
sabotagesimple
-
sabotagessimple
-
have sabotagedperfect
-
has sabotagedperfect
-
am sabotagingprogressive
-
are sabotagingprogressive
-
is sabotagingprogressive
-
have been sabotagingperfect progressive
-
has been sabotagingperfect progressive
Past
-
sabotagedsimple
-
had sabotagedperfect
-
was sabotagingprogressive
-
were sabotagingprogressive
-
had been sabotagingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of sabotage
First recorded in 1865–70; from French, from sabot(er) “to botch,” originally, “to harry, shake up, strike” (verb derivative of sabot sabot ) + -age -age
Explanation
Sabotage isn't very nice: It's when you ruin or disrupt something by messing up a part of it on purpose. Loosening the blades on your competitor's ice skates would definitely be considered sabotage. Sabotage comes from the French word saboter, which literally means “walk noisily.” That's funny, because the last thing you'd want to do when committing an act of sabotage is stomp around and get caught. It’s believed that sabotage came into use in 1910 as a noun, and then later in 1918 as a verb. Apparently, people only became so cruel in the last century or so.
Vocabulary lists containing sabotage
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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.
See Examples For:
Recognizing its importance to Germany's nuclear ambitions, Allied forces targeted the plant through sabotage and bombing operations.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 16, 2026
Grynkewich elaborated what he called his "theory of victory" to defeat an armed attack on the alliance as worries surge over what Western officials call a "hybrid" campaign of sabotage and interference by Moscow.
From Barron's ● Oct. 12, 2026
Steinbrenner paid Spira $40,000 for information on Mr. Winfield and then leaked it to the press in an attempt to sabotage the ballplayer’s career.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 8, 2026
Prime Minister Andy Burnham will hold talks on tackling cyber-security threats and sabotage with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz on Thursday.
From BBC ● Oct. 7, 2026
He did not want to sabotage his discovery by taking anything from the cabinet.
From "A Confederacy of Dunces" by John Kennedy Toole
Rom-coms and dance movies are often littered with convoluted circumstances, but “Shake Your Booty!” sabotages the heartfelt story it wants to tell about finding new love and learning to let go.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 25, 2026
Ms. Moyer-Nocchi repeatedly, bewilderingly sabotages her considerable achievements by not bothering to get small but significant particulars right.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 13, 2026
“Psychological research has shown us that panic amplifies helplessness and sabotages rational thought,” Michael Valdez, an expert in neurology and addictive behaviors, told Salon.
From Salon ● Apr. 16, 2025
It seems to mean well, even as it sabotages investor performance.
From Slate ● Feb. 19, 2024
"Then the Earthman—I mean the Earthman who sabotages the rockets—has to be a part of the technical staff," Rick said.
From The Scarlet Lake Mystery by Harold L. (Harold Leland) Goodwin
Cyber attacks are common, and undersea cables have been sabotaged.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 27, 2026
Africa's largest oil producer has increased production in recent years in part by cracking down on theft while also hiring former militants who sabotaged pipelines to act as security.
From Barron's ● Jul. 13, 2026
According to police, the suspect is believed to have sabotaged the payment system via a cyber attack, getting the system to authorise his transaction after entering only one cent as the charged amount.
From BBC ● Feb. 18, 2026
Grantham’s latest bearish case is that U.S. stocks could be sabotaged this year by an overheated IPO market.
From MarketWatch ● Feb. 17, 2026
But the day before we were to meet, the South African government took a step that sabotaged whatever goodwill had been engendered by the Commonwealth visitors.
From "Long Walk to Freedom" by Nelson Mandela
Barrot said the attacks targeted government ministries, companies, and service operators, with the aim "either of capturing information or sabotaging operations, for example rail infrastructure, as was the case in Poland".
From Barron's ● Jul. 13, 2026
The music mogul also accused JOP — who founded his own label Street Mob Records in 2018 — of sabotaging his own bandmates.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 29, 2026
This week I am looking at the big picture, sharing words of caution to avoid sabotaging future prospects.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 21, 2026
But McLaughlin did not merely alienate the judiciary; she consistently undermined the administration’s legal arguments, sabotaging lawyers’ efforts to cover up unlawful conduct by boasting about it on social media.
From Slate ● Feb. 18, 2026
As lead therapist in Ms. Castro’s rehabilitation, I ask that you refrain from sabotaging my therapy plan.
From "Burning Blue" by Paul Griffin
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Get a wordDefinitions 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.
