as in to weaken
to diminish the physical strength of
the heart surgery debilitated the college athlete beyond his worst fears
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Recent Examples of debilitate
His logic is based on the fact that many potentially debilitating diseases develop over decades, and that understanding one’s vulnerability to one or more of them well in advance can facilitate interventions to prevent or delay the onset of symptoms.
—
Web Golinkin, Forbes.com, 24 July 2025
Chris Campagna, Founder and CIO of True Terpenes, shared a powerful story of a veteran who found relief from debilitating pain and PTSD through cannabis products formulated with terpenes.
—Peter Su, Rolling Stone, 15 July 2025
Dry eye disease can be debilitating, Brocks stresses.
—Angela Haupt, Time, 21 July 2025
The virus was debilitating, a friend shared in a Facebook update after Caldwell's eighth round of chemotherapy.
—Cara Lynn Shultz, People.com, 20 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for debilitate
Web Golinkin, Forbes.com, 24 July 2025
Chris Campagna, Founder and CIO of True Terpenes, shared a powerful story of a veteran who found relief from debilitating pain and PTSD through cannabis products formulated with terpenes.
—Peter Su, Rolling Stone, 15 July 2025
Dry eye disease can be debilitating, Brocks stresses.
—Angela Haupt, Time, 21 July 2025
The virus was debilitating, a friend shared in a Facebook update after Caldwell's eighth round of chemotherapy.
—Cara Lynn Shultz, People.com, 20 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for debilitate
Recent Examples of Synonyms for debilitate
Verb
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Also in the Pacific, Tropical Depression Iona, over 1,400 miles west of Honolulu, continued weakening as it was expected to cross the International Date Line on Saturday, according to a hurricane center advisory.—
Eduardo Cuevas,
USA Today,
2 Aug. 2025
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Alcohol also weakens the valve that keeps stomach acid in place, leading to reflux and heartburn.—
Jordi Lippe-McGraw,
Forbes.com,
1 Aug. 2025
Verb
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On the campaign trail, the president spent time courting faith leaders throughout the country, often refusing to soften his language in those venues as well.—
Lalee Ibssa,
ABC News,
14 July 2025
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By then, Trump had softened his tariff stance and the markets had rebounded accordingly.—
Kate Plummer,
MSNBC Newsweek,
14 July 2025
Cite this Entry
“Debilitate.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/debilitate. Accessed 7 Aug. 2025.
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