debilitate
verb
Did you know?
Debilitate, enfeeble, undermine, and sap all share the general sense "to weaken." But while debilitate holds the distinction among these words of coming from the Latin word for "weak"—debilis—it packs a potent punch. Often used of disease or something that strikes like a disease or illness, debilitate might suggest a temporary impairment—but a pervasive one at that. Enfeeble, a very close synonym of debilitate, connotes a pitiable, but often reversible, condition of weakness and helplessness. Undermine and sap suggest a weakening by something working surreptitiously and insidiously.
Examples of debilitate in a Sentence
Justin Williams, New York Times, 26 Oct. 2025
Battling the debilitating symptoms of a late-stage brain tumor, his grasp on reality becomes increasingly fragile, and as the unlikely duo sets out on the run, old memories blur with the present, dredging up dark secrets from his past.
—Matt Grobar, Deadline, 24 Oct. 2025
The lawsuit said many of the plaintiffs experienced debilitating panic attacks and insomnia, among other physical ailments.
—Christina Hall, Freep.com, 23 Oct. 2025
These results mean that by tracking the capsule motion and projecting it on a headset for the astronauts inside, our team may be able to reduce debilitating motion sickness by roughly half.
—Taylor Lonner, The Conversation, 21 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for debilitate
Cite this Entry
“Debilitate.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/debilitate. Accessed 29 Oct. 2025.
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debilitate
verb
Medical Definition
debilitate
transitive verb
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