disable

American  

[dis-ey-buhl] / dɪsˈeɪ bəl /

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.

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disable British  

/ 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)

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Other Word Forms

• disablement noun
• disabler noun

Etymology

Origin of disable

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

Example Sentences

In the first study, researcher Navish Wadhwa and his team found that salmonella and E. coli can migrate across moist surfaces even when their flagella are disabled.

From Science Daily

He did this by registering the Rolls-Royces and Mercedes as vehicles specially adapted for disabled people, meaning they were exempt from duty.

From BBC

‘My parents begged me never to put him in a home’: I have taken care of my disabled brother my entire life.

From MarketWatch

That logic is broken, McNicholas said, because under federal law, to get a 100% disability rating — which each of the officers obtained — a veteran doesn’t have to be fully disabled.

From Los Angeles Times

That made applied behavior analysis, or ABA, as the therapy is called, the fastest-growing service in Medicaid, the state-run program for low-income and disabled people.

From The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

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