inactivate
Americanverb (used with object)
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to make inactive.
The bomb was inactivated.
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Immunology. to stop the activity of (certain biological substances).
verb
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of inactivate
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.
“I also want to just stress that there’s nothing, there’s no cooking of the mushroom or freezing of the mushroom that would inactivate the toxin,” Smollin said.
From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 16, 2026
“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
These practices will kill most bacteria and inactivate any heat-sensitive bacterial toxins that are present.
From Salon • Apr. 1, 2024
A team headed by Professor Jörg Tatzelt, head of the Department of Biochemistry of Neurodegenerative Diseases at Ruhr University Bochum, Germany, showed that misfolded prion proteins can inactivate the TDP-43 protein.
From Science Daily • Dec. 4, 2023
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
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
