immobile
Americanadjective
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incapable of moving or being moved.
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not mobile or moving; motionless.
adjective
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not moving; motionless
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not able to move or be moved; fixed
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of immobile
First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English word from Latin word immōbilis. See im- 2, mobile
Explanation
Something immobile can't move or be moved — it's locked or stuck in place. If you know that mobile things move around, then you're halfway to understanding what immobile means: this refers to anything that can't move. A mountain is immobile; no one's moving that. Sometimes people who are very large — like offensive lineman — are described as immobile, because they are big and hard to move. When something is immobile, it's not going anywhere.
Vocabulary lists containing immobile
ACT Vocabulary List
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Death of a Salesman
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UCPS 6th Grade Roots List #3
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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.
About three hours later, James called NHS 111 and told the operator his brother had gone immobile and had become mute.
From BBC • May 12, 2026
"Haven't stood on my feet in over a week... been in a hospital bed immobile since my race," she said in a social media post.
From Barron's • Feb. 17, 2026
Mr. Bird emphasizes that land is easy to borrow against because “it is both immobile and extremely durable.”
From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 31, 2025
At the Stewart Detention Center in Lumpkin, Ga., Rodney Taylor, a double amputee, was rendered nearly immobile.
From Los Angeles Times • Aug. 29, 2025
As it lay beneath him, its wings and its body immobile, it merely looked up at him with its dark eyes and blinked.
From "The Girl Who Married a Lion: and Other Tales from Africa" by Alexander Mccall Smith
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.
