debilitate

/dɪˈbɪlɪteɪt/ (bre, ipa) · /dɪˈbɪlɪteɪt/ (ame, ipa) · /di-ˈbi-lə-ˌtāt dē-/ (ame, mw)

debilitate — verb

  • debilitatepresent simple I / you / we / they
  • debilitateshe / she / it
  • debilitatedpast simple
  • debilitating-ing form

1. to drain a person's or animal's body of its normal strength, so that ordinary ta

1.動詞及物C1
釋義

to drain a person's or animal's body of its normal strength, so that ordinary tasks like walking, working, or thinking clearly become hard.

例句

A six-week bout of malaria debilitated Jiwoo so badly that climbing the stairs left her breathless.

be debilitated by + illness

The chemotherapy debilitated Stefan, and for weeks he could barely hold a coffee cup steady.

subject is usually an illness or treatment

同義詞
  • weaken

    broader and more neutral; works for objects and ideas too

  • enfeeble

    literary, almost archaic; suggests lasting feebleness

  • sap

    informal; focuses on draining energy bit by bit

  • incapacitate

    stronger; the person can no longer do something specific

反義詞

文法句型

debilitate + somebody/something

be debilitated by something

用法筆記

Subject is usually an illness, injury, treatment, or sustained hardship; object is a living body (person or animal). Frequently passive (be debilitated by). Distinguish from 'weaken', which is broader and can apply to abstract things like an argument or a currency.

常見錯誤

❌The bad news debilitated the stock price.
✅The bad news weakened the stock price.
💡debilitate is for living bodies, not abstract things like prices or arguments.
❌I felt debilitate after the flu.
✅I felt debilitated after the flu.
💡use the past-participle form as the adjective after 'feel' or 'be'.