to paralyze

Examples

• All

• The spinal cancer he contracted in 1984 paralyzed his legs; they were now shriveled and useless.

  Academic text (2011)

• But for us, the fear is paralyzing; it generates not only anxiety but also paralysis.

  Academic text (2011)

• You cannot be afraid, or better yet, you cannot allow your fear to paralyze you or your actions.

  Academic text (2008)

• And rather than let that paralyze you into doing nothing at all, embrace it.

• Far too often, teachers have been paralyzed by the fear of making a mistake.

  Academic text (1993)

• And if I let that paralyze me, then I can't do what I'm meant to do.

• Don't let your own perfectionism paralyze you, OK?

  Zoe Hong

• In the United States, partisan confrontation is paralyzing the political system.

  Academic text (2012)

• A nation and its citizens can become paralyzed when they are suffocated under corrupt and oppressive leaders.

  Academic text (2008)

• Consider Chris, a drunk driver who hits an innocent pedestrian, Danielle, paralyzing her from the waist down.

  Academic text (2017)

Synonyms

F

to freeze

vsto paralyze

244 1.6

Stop moving suddenly because of fear or surprise

is broader and can describe inability to act for other reasons

I

to incapacitate

vsto paralyze

46 7.5

To make a person or thing not able to do normal activities

covers inability to move or act for physical or metaphorical reasons

I

to immobilize

vsto paralyze

21 6.0

To stop movement or action

is used for both physical stopping and broader inability to act

P

to petrify

vsto paralyze

7 4.8

To make someone so frightened that they cannot move or think

can arise from many causes and is not limited to extreme fear

Antonyms

E

to enable

459 2.3

To give someone the ability or chance to do something

How Paralysed

to paralyze

• US

266 5.3

to disable

87 3.5

to immobilize

21 6.0

to impair

61 5.1

to hinder

75 3.6

Surface Forms

Morphology

Etymology