1
as in sterile
not able to produce fruit or offspring
most mules are impotent
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in helpless
unable to act or achieve one's purpose
an impotent ruler who was just a figurehead
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Examples Sentences
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Recent Examples of impotent
Sunny wants to clean up, but the prospect of this bot supposedly programmed by her dead husband touching their dead boy’s things is evidently the shock Suzie needed to shake her from impotent despair to useful rage.
—
Chris Klimek, Vulture, 10 July 2024
Thanks to the constraints imposed by the Zeitgeist, the Fed was omnipotent in principle but impotent in practice.
—Sebastian Mallaby, Foreign Affairs, 30 June 2021
That’s what California gets for having a Republican Party almost fully impotent at the state level.
—Thomas Elias, The Mercury News, 8 Nov. 2024
Everything getting in the way of Cesar’s big plans boils down to the ills of society: stagnant, corrupt forces in positions of power and the careless whims of the rich who benefit from these long-standing, impotent leaders.
—Fran Hoepfner, Vulture, 27 Sep. 2024
See all Example Sentences for impotent 
Chris Klimek, Vulture, 10 July 2024
Thanks to the constraints imposed by the Zeitgeist, the Fed was omnipotent in principle but impotent in practice.
—Sebastian Mallaby, Foreign Affairs, 30 June 2021
That’s what California gets for having a Republican Party almost fully impotent at the state level.
—Thomas Elias, The Mercury News, 8 Nov. 2024
Everything getting in the way of Cesar’s big plans boils down to the ills of society: stagnant, corrupt forces in positions of power and the careless whims of the rich who benefit from these long-standing, impotent leaders.
—Fran Hoepfner, Vulture, 27 Sep. 2024
See all Example Sentences for impotent
Recent Examples of Synonyms for impotent
Adjective
-
Carter’s extended time in hospice gave his family the opportunity to prepare for his passing emotionally, cherish precious moments and say their goodbyes without the sterile interruptions of a hospital setting.—
Stacey Manley,
The Mercury News,
4 Jan. 2025
-
How did lush rainforest colonize the sterile land so quickly?—
Kevin West,
Travel + Leisure,
4 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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The wind is bending thick swirls of flame over Sunset Boulevard and the firefighters are helpless to stop it.—
Matt Gutman,
ABC News,
9 Jan. 2025
-
Buster the yellow Lab is a thicc fella who can stop, but will not stop, gleefully belly flopping into his swimming pool despite the increasingly helpless and desperately profane protestations of his mother.—
Julie Klausner,
Vulture,
27 Dec. 2024
Adjective
-
California officials are proposing making looting during a local emergency a felony, as wildfires continue to blaze through parts of their state, leaving barren neighborhoods susceptible to such crime.—
Sarah Fortinsky,
The Hill,
15 Jan. 2025
-
In one glance, an observer can see the barren, airless lunar surface and a cold, desert planet that once harbored rivers, lakes, and potentially life, all while standing on our own planet, an oasis in the cosmos.—
Stephen Clark,
Ars Technica,
14 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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After October 7th, people were shocked and stunned and paralyzed and afraid of rockets and trying to figure out where their dead bodies were and whether their kids were dead or captive.—
Isaac Chotiner,
The New Yorker,
2 Jan. 2025
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The inspirational documentary chronicles the actor's storied rise but mainly focuses on his later life and work championing people with disabilities and spinal-cord injuries after a horse-riding accident left him paralyzed.—
Brian Truitt,
USA TODAY,
24 Dec. 2024
Adjective
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China’s persistently low consumer inflation indicates that China is struggling with weak domestic demand, stoking fears of deflation.—
Yeo Boon Ping,
CNBC,
9 Jan. 2025
-
Its woman-on-the-run story is weak at times, not quite engaging enough to get through the constant death and destruction.—
Kelly Lawler,
USA TODAY,
9 Jan. 2025
Thesaurus Entries Near impotent
Cite this Entry
“Impotent.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/impotent. Accessed 22 Jan. 2025.
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