1
as in malfunctioning
not being in working order
we have several inoperable cars on the property
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in useless
not capable of being put to use or account
a delightfully creative but inoperable plan for building a theme park in the area
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of inoperable
Four refrigeration units were inoperable at the time of the inspection.
—
Camila Pedrosa, Sacramento Bee, 28 Feb. 2025
Diamond had been diagnosed with an inoperable sarcoma, a rare kind of cancer, according to his family.
—Hannah Fry, Los Angeles Times, 25 Feb. 2025
With that and other problems — such as the sidebar becoming inoperable — the fact that File Explorer hasn’t crashed doesn’t matter.
—Zak Doffman, Forbes, 23 Feb. 2025
Kimberly later dies in season 5 of an inoperable brain tumor.
—John Russell, People.com, 10 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for inoperable
Camila Pedrosa, Sacramento Bee, 28 Feb. 2025
Diamond had been diagnosed with an inoperable sarcoma, a rare kind of cancer, according to his family.
—Hannah Fry, Los Angeles Times, 25 Feb. 2025
With that and other problems — such as the sidebar becoming inoperable — the fact that File Explorer hasn’t crashed doesn’t matter.
—Zak Doffman, Forbes, 23 Feb. 2025
Kimberly later dies in season 5 of an inoperable brain tumor.
—John Russell, People.com, 10 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for inoperable
Recent Examples of Synonyms for inoperable
Adjective
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Landing on the Moon comes with numerous complications, including an often-uneven surface and the lack of an atmosphere, rendering parachutes useless.—
Ars Technica,
Ars Technica,
18 Mar. 2025
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This was quite the useless promo, and much of what Rollins said could have been saved for SmackDown.—
Alfred Konuwa,
Forbes,
17 Mar. 2025
Adjective
-
Hurt In Minors, In Hall Of Fame A broken arm at age 19 while diving for a flyball in the minors turned a promising pitcher into a full-time outfielder who hit his way into the Baseball Hall of Fame.—
Chuck Murr,
Forbes,
10 Mar. 2025
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The most poignant of those messages came from safety Josh Metellus, who posted a broken heart emoji that indicated the Vikings were moving on from his best friend.—
Dane Mizutani,
Twin Cities,
10 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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But that’s impractical for building habitats on other worlds.—
Sven Bilén,
The Conversation,
13 Mar. 2025
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The caption itself is impractical, if not impossible, for Worthy now.—
Sam McDowell,
Kansas City Star,
10 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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Perhaps most notably, both sides deploy decoy vehicles—either inoperative derelicts or inflatable fakes—to draw enemy fire away from real vehicles.—
David Axe,
Forbes,
31 Oct. 2024
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In wartime, however, the calculus changes, because most of the costs are inoperative.—
William C. Wohlforth,
Foreign Affairs,
22 June 2021
Adjective
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Most revisit claims also don’t account for cloud coverage, which can make an optical image unusable.—
Elizabeth Duffy,
Forbes,
11 Mar. 2025
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One word seems to recur again and again (and again): unusable.—
Mathew Rodriguez,
Them,
11 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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Lawmakers last year banned the installation of nonfunctional turf, invasive plants and artificial turf on most commercial, industrial and state government property.—
Elise Schmelzer,
The Denver Post,
21 Feb. 2025
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Trump curbed the options available to foreigners planning to enter the U.S. by making the CBP One app nonfunctional on Inauguration Day.—
Megan Ulu-Lani Boyanton,
The Denver Post,
30 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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However, the land presented a challenge: its marshy terrain was unsuitable for planting.—
Nel-Olivia Waga,
Forbes,
10 Mar. 2025
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Moscow has for months been seeking to weaponize Ukraine's democratic freeze, with Putin and his allies framing Zelenskyy as illegitimate and therefore unsuitable to take part in peace talks.—
David Brennan,
ABC News,
24 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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Drivers say their contract issues center on pay as well as safety issues, including nonfunctioning heaters, loudspeakers and windshield wipers.—
Zaz Hollander,
Anchorage Daily News,
4 Feb. 2023
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In 2020, the state of Virginia passed some bills limiting pretextual traffic stops—for example, when police spot nonfunctioning brake or tail lights or hear an overly loud exhaust system.—
Michael Tomasky,
The New Republic,
30 Jan. 2023
Cite this Entry
“Inoperable.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/inoperable. Accessed 22 Mar. 2025.
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