ISEE/SSAT Vocabulary BuilderWordsDdebilitate
ISEE/SSAThard
debilitate
Meaning: to weaken someone's strength or ability severely
debilitate in a sentence
How debilitate is used in real sentences:
The long illness debilitated him so much that he could barely climb the stairs.
Weeks of dehydration and heat had debilitated the hikers long before rescuers finally reached the ridge.
“Meanwhile, lung disease had debilitated older workers, shortening interviews and erasing stories before researchers arrived.”
— from the passage Voices Across Generations
Synonyms for debilitate
Other words for debilitate — weaken, enfeeble and incapacitate — carry the same meaning.
- weaken
- enfeeble
- incapacitate
Antonyms of debilitate
Words that mean the opposite of debilitate:
- strengthen
- invigorate
- energize
Where it comes from
From Latin debilis 'weak'
Word parts
- de — opposite, reverse
debilitate: de- (away from) + habil (able) + -itate (make)
Memory hook
DE-BILITATE: takes away your ABILITY to move.
Practice debilitate in the app