cripple
cripple — noun
- cripplesingular
- cripplesplural
1. a harsh slur aimed at someone who has serious difficulty walking or moving becau
a harsh slur aimed at someone who has serious difficulty walking or moving because of physical disability.
Jin reported the man for calling a passenger a cripple.
reporting the word as abusive language
At dinner, Zuri told her cousin that cripple was a cruel word.
metalinguistic warning about the label
In the article, wheelchair users explained why they reject the label cripple.
Rania winced when a classmate joked that the new student was a cripple.
- call someone a cripple
- use the word cripple
- label someone a cripple
Grammar Patterns
call someone a cripple
use the word cripple
Usage Note
This noun is highly offensive in modern English. Use respectful alternatives such as disabled person, wheelchair user, or the specific term a person chooses for themself.
Common Mistakes
2. a rude insult for a person thought to be emotionally shut down or unable to show
a rude insult for a person thought to be emotionally shut down or unable to show feeling.
Constanza said the novel's father was called a cripple for never showing love.
used to criticize emotional coldness
On the podcast, the host described quiet men as cripples, and Dahlia objected.
plural insult in media discussion
Hoa read that some tabloids used cripple for people seen as emotionally cold.
Élise warned her brother that calling his ex a cripple was needlessly insulting.
- call someone a cripple
- emotional cripple
- describe someone as a cripple
- emotional cripple
full phrase that states the same insulting idea more explicitly
- icebox
older informal insult for someone seen as emotionally cold
Grammar Patterns
describe someone as a cripple
call someone an emotional cripple
Usage Note
This sense is rare and insulting. It attacks a person through a hurtful stereotype, so writers usually prefer emotionally closed, detached, or unable to express feelings.
Common Mistakes
cripple — verb
- cripplepresent simple I / you / we / they
- crippleshe / she / it
- crippledpast simple
- crippling-ing form
1. to hurt someone so severely that their body can no longer move normally.
to hurt someone so severely that their body can no longer move normally.
The blast crippled Noa's left leg and ended the season early.
direct object = body injury victim
Before the rescue team arrived, falling ice had crippled William's shoulder.
A factory accident crippled Abigail, leaving her unable to climb stairs alone.
result clause showing permanent movement loss
The land mine crippled Sade's foot during the long walk home.
- cripple a leg
- cripple someone for life
- badly crippled
Grammar Patterns
cripple somebody
cripple somebody's leg
Usage Note
This sense usually refers to grave, lasting injury. When the person is the focus, many modern writers avoid cripple because it can sound harsh or outdated.
Common Mistakes
2. to limit a person's life or confidence so severely that they struggle to functio
to limit a person's life or confidence so severely that they struggle to function well.
Years of debt crippled Sana's confidence before she opened the shop.
figurative object: confidence
Months of fear crippled the swimmer's confidence after the near-drowning.
After the leak, the singer's trust in her team was crippled by shame.
Constant threats crippled the witness, so she refused to return to court.
figurative effect on a person's ability to act
- cripple confidence
- cripple trust
- cripple someone's life
Grammar Patterns
cripple somebody's confidence
cripple somebody emotionally
Usage Note
This figurative sense is often used with confidence, trust, ambition, or a person's daily life. It is stronger than simply upset or discourage and suggests deep damage.
Common Mistakes
3. to damage an organization, service, or economy so badly that it can barely keep
to damage an organization, service, or economy so badly that it can barely keep working.
The cyberattack crippled the hospital network for two full days.
common with services and networks
Local farms were crippled by weeks of flooding and rising costs.
By dawn, the strike had crippled train services across the region.
That winter, a fuel shortage crippled the island's fishing industry.
subject can be disaster, shortage, or attack
- cripple the economy
- cripple a network
- cripple train services
Grammar Patterns
cripple a service
cripple an industry
cripple an economy
Usage Note
This is the most common modern figurative sense. It usually refers to systems, services, industries, or finances that lose much of their ability to operate.
Common Mistakes
4. to make a program or machine stop working properly, often as a deliberate act.
to make a program or machine stop working properly, often as a deliberate act.
The fake update crippled the tablet until the owner paid again.
device disabled until payment
By Monday morning, software demanding payment had crippled the office printer.
After one virus hit, the school laptops were crippled and every login screen froze.
One careless click left the camera crippled by a pirate program.
malware or lockout context
- cripple a device
- cripple software
- cripple a phone
Grammar Patterns
cripple software
cripple a device
Usage Note
This sense is common in security or software discussions. It usually implies that something was intentionally damaged, locked, or disabled rather than simply broken by accident.
Common Mistakes
Word family
Synonym discussion
Sense: verb/3
Cripple, disable, paralyze, and wreck can all describe very serious damage, but they do not feel the same. Cripple often suggests that something important has lost much of its ability to function, as when a strike cripples train services or debt cripples a business. Disable is more neutral and technical, so it fits machines, systems, and software well. Paralyze is even stronger and usually suggests near-total stoppage, especially in transport or government. Wreck is broader and more informal: it can mean physical destruction, emotional harm, or simply ruining plans. Because cripple can sound harsh when used about people, many writers now prefer disable or severely damage in neutral contexts.
Common collocations
Etymology
First known use
12th century
12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a Adjective