inactivate

American

[in-ak-tuh-veyt] / ɪnˈæk təˌveɪt /

verb (used with object)

inactivated, inactivating

to make inactive.

The bomb was inactivated.
Immunology. to stop the activity of (certain biological substances).

inactivate British

/ ɪnˈæktɪˌveɪt /

verb

(tr) to render inactive

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

inactivation noun

Etymology

Origin of inactivate

First recorded in 1905–10; inactive + -ate ¹

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.

Pasteurization and proper cooking techniques inactivate the virus.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 24, 2024

Research so far has shown that virus particles end up in the milk of infected cows, but that pasteurization will inactivate the virus.

From Salon • May 20, 2024

“The decision to inactivate comes after concerns about clinical processes and documentation were identified,” the hospital said in a statement.

From New York Times • Apr. 29, 2024

By engineering the mouse embryo to kill or inactivate its own olfactory neurons, the researchers could easily determine if rat neurons had restored the animals' sense of smell.

From Science Daily • Apr. 25, 2024

Extracts in which no attempt was made to inactivate the enzymes present proved unsatisfactory.

From Myology and Serology of the Avian Family Fringillidae A Taxonomic Study by Stallcup, William B.

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023