inanimate
Americanadjective
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not animate; lifeless.
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spiritless; sluggish; dull.
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Linguistics. belonging to a syntactic category or having a semantic feature that is characteristic of words denoting objects, concepts, and beings regarded as lacking perception and volition (opposed to animate).
adjective
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lacking the qualities or features of living beings; not animate
inanimate objects
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lacking any sign of life or consciousness; appearing dead
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lacking vitality; spiritless; dull
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of inanimate
From the Late Latin word inanimātus, dating back to 1555–65. See in- 3, animate
Explanation
Inanimate describes a non-living thing. Chairs, baseballs, sofa cushions and sadly, snowmen, are all inanimate objects. We can break inanimate down into two Latin roots: in, which means “not,” and animatus, which translates to “alive.” So inanimate means simply, "not alive." That include things that are recently dead, things that were never alive to begin with, and things that simply look dead: A bear in hibernation may appear inanimate due to its decreased heart rate, but don’t be fooled — it’s very much alive.
Vocabulary lists containing inanimate
Speak Your Mind: Anim
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Vocabulary to Describe Literary Devices
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100 SAT Words Beginning with "I"
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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.
I hadn’t realized how emotionally attached I had become to inanimate holdings or to my own sense of financial savvy.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 3, 2026
It’s a projection onto the inanimate world of animism.
From Slate ● Sep. 29, 2026
The film’s body is drained — an inanimate husk.
From Salon ● Aug. 26, 2026
“We’re just building the world, so you need some rules, otherwise all the inanimate objects can start talking,” Plaza says.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 20, 2026
Except for Mary Ann, who couldn’t laugh because she was inanimate.
From "Flora & Ulysses: The Illuminated Adventures" by Kate DiCamillo
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Get a wordDefinitions 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.
