disable

[dis-ey-buhl]

verb (used with object)

disabled, disabling 

1. to make unable or unfit; weaken or destroy the capability of; incapacitate.

   The detective successfully disabled the bomb.

   Synonyms: paralyze, enfeeble

2. to impair or injure (a person or animal) physically or mentally.

   The accident disabled him for life.

3. to make legally incapable; disqualify.

   Minors are legally disabled from entering into a contract.

4. Digital Technology.,  to make (a device, system, or feature) unable to function; turn off.

   Some of the car’s advanced safety features can be disabled.

disable

/ dɪsˈeɪbəl /

verb

1. to make ineffective, unfit, or incapable, as by crippling

2. to make or pronounce legally incapable

3. to switch off (an electronic device)

Other Word Forms

• disablement noun
• disabler noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of disable¹

First recorded in 1475–85; dis- ¹ + able

Example Sentences

Officials have long known that disabled residents are disproportionately likely to die in wildfires.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

These potentially disabling and often poorly understood conditions—including rheumatoid arthritis, lupus and Type 1 diabetes—occur when the immune system mistakenly attacks the body’s own cells and tissues.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

I was certain it would be the right decision in the long run, especially if one or both of us became ill or disabled.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Her work often conveyed her painful relationship with her body, disabled through polio in her childhood and serious injuries following a bus accident.

Read more on BBC

But the idea has been criticised, with disability charity Scope calling for the government to tackle the "real barriers" young disabled people face in finding work before removing "financial safety nets".

Read more on BBC

Related Words

• exhaust 
• immobilize 
• knock out 
• ruin 
• shatter 
• undermine 
• wreck