paralyze
[par-uh-lahyz]
- to affect with paralysis.
- to bring to a condition of helpless stoppage, inactivity, or inability to act: The strike paralyzed communications.
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Also especially British, par·a·lyse.
Origin of paralyze
Synonyms
See more synonyms for on Thesaurus.com2. See shock1.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Related Words
disabled, helpless, crippled, incapacitated, stupefied, benumbed, inactive, inert, nerveless, paralytic, torpid, unmovingExamples from the Web for paralyzed
Contemporary Examples
He was paralyzed from the waist down, a World War II veteran and had six weeks to live.
This jibe comes after ads in which Davis attacked the paralyzed Abbot for not caring about other wheelchair-bound Texans.
Mark Zuckerberg is putting $25 million towards tackling an epidemic that has paralyzed the world.
How Does Zuckerberg’s Ebola Pledge Measure Up To Other Bigwig Donations?Nina Strochlic
October 14, 2014
It certainly allays fears that the company is stagnating under Tim Cook, too paralyzed to make decisions without its founder.
Bigger, Bolder, and Better Than Ever: Steve Jobs Would Be Proud of Today's AppleKyle Chayka
September 9, 2014
In a 1964 Esquire profile, the usually savage Helen Lawrenson said his personality had paralyzed her into wordlessness.
Historical Examples
She was blind and paralyzed, and on the extreme verge of eternity.
Calendar's ravings were abrupted as if his tongue had been paralyzed.
The Black BagLouis Joseph Vance
By and by, her brain grew less active; thought was paralyzed by pain.
Hetty's Strange HistoryAnonymous
A man whose limbs have been paralyzed, may still will to remove mountains.
Life: Its True GenesisR. W. Wright
Later I learned that his spine had been broken, that he would be paralyzed for life.
The HarborErnest Poole
Word Origin and History for paralyzed
paralyze
v.
1804, from French paralyser (16c.), from Old French paralisie "paralysis," from Latin paralysis (see paralysis). Figurative use from 1805. Related: Paralyzed; paralyzing.
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
paralyze
(păr′ə-līz′)- To affect with paralysis; cause to be paralytic.
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The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.