impairment
Americannoun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of impairment
Explanation
An impairment makes some things difficult to do. An eye injury can be an impairment to seeing. An impairment can also be any change for the worse. People with impairments have trouble doing something. If you have a hearing impairment, you can’t hear very well. If you have a taste impairment, you can’t enjoy flavors. If you bump your head and can’t remember your name, you’re suffering a mental impairment. Some impairments are temporary. If you sprain your ankle, it will heal, but you'll have to live with the impairment for a while. Losing your job is an impairment to your career and finances. Impairments make things more difficult.
Vocabulary lists containing impairment
"Remarks at the Dedication of the Aerospace Medical Health Center," Vocabulary from the speech
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myPerspectives 7.1
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"Remarks at the Dedication of the Aerospace Medical Health Center" by John F. Kennedy
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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:
The company said that during the quarter, it recorded $2 billion in noncash goodwill and brand impairment charges “primarily triggered by a sustained decline in the company’s share price and market capitalization.”
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 15, 2026
Authorities did not indicate the referral was related to impairment or a medical emergency.
From Salon ● Jul. 5, 2026
As this insulation breaks down, patients can develop neurological problems such as difficulty walking or vision impairment.
From Science Daily ● Jun. 29, 2026
The result is a society imbued with ignorance, indifference and even disdain for individuals wrestling with intersecting challenges of aging and cognitive impairment.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 20, 2026
Their symptoms ranged from impairment of memory to schizophrenic and depressive reactions.
From "Silent Spring" by Rachel Carson
“I’m generally very cautious about starting a GLP-1 in my older adult patients who have functional impairments, like needing a walker to ambulate or needing assistance with transferring from a bed to a chair.”
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 25, 2026
They reveal the complex sentencing exercise, including submissions about the boys' neurological impairments and their capacity to understand the impact that they had had on the victims.
From BBC ● Jun. 12, 2026
I studied at a school for children with visual impairments.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 4, 2026
The analysts think major banks could have to further raise credit impairments and provisioning.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 26, 2026
He had cognitive impairments that suggested some organic brain damage and behavioral problems that suggested schizophrenia and other serious mental illness.
From "Just Mercy" by Bryan Stevenson
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.
