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Glite Dictionary
to zombify creativity

to zombify creativity

9.9
Make someone's ability to think of new ideas slow and dull
  • phrasal verb
  • Informal
translation icon : aplanar la creatividad
  • Social media overuse may zombify creativity by encouraging mindless scrolling instead of original thought.

Examples

  • Don't let stress and fatigue zombify creativity in your artistic pursuits.

  • Long meetings late in the day can zombify creativity and leave teams uninspired.

  • Don't zombify creativity with too many rules!

  • The strict guidelines can zombify creativity in the workplace.

  • Stressful environments can easily zombify creativity and hinder innovative ideas.

  • Endless regulations can zombify creativity, stifling the ability to think outside the box.

  • When deadlines loom, the pressure can zombify creativity, making it hard to generate new concepts.

Synonyms

to lobotomize
vsto zombify creativity
  • US
4 9.4

Make people or groups unable to think clearly and work well

targets imaginative ability specifically making it lifeless rather than general dulling
to stifle innovation
vsto zombify creativity
2 6.8

Prevent new ideas and methods from growing in a company or group

affects personal imagination by making it lifeless rather than only blocking new methods
to lobotomize creativity
vsto zombify creativity
  • Informal
9.9

To stop someone from thinking of new ideas

makes imagination lifeless and dull rather than just weakened
to suffocate someone's creativity
vsto zombify creativity
7.2

Stop someone from thinking of new ideas

causes imagination to become lifeless and unresponsive instead of merely blocked
to pedestrianize
vsto zombify creativity
7.3

To make something ordinary and dull, without imagination

creates a lifeless, unresponsive imagination rather than simply ordinary style

Antonyms

to inspire
837 3.2

Cause someone to feel excited and ready to act

How Creative

to zombify creativity
  • Informal
9.9

Surface Forms

zombify infinitive
zombified past
zombified past participle
zombifying present participle
zombifies third person singular

Morphology

zombify + creativity

The verb 'zombify' is transparently formed from 'zombie' + the causative suffix '-fy' meaning 'make X like a zombie', so when combined with 'creativity' it straightforwardly yields 'make creativity dull or lifeless'. A B1 learner who knows both constituents can readily infer this metaphorical but directly compositional meaning.

Etymology

Zombify creativity comes from the picture of zombies in films: when people turn into zombies they move slowly, copy the same actions, and lose their own ideas. So to zombify someone's creativity means to make their creative thinking 'dull and lifeless'.