cripple

[ krip-uh l ]
/ ˈkrɪp əl /

noun

verb (used with object), crip·pled, crip·pling.

to make a cripple of; lame.
to disable; impair; weaken.

adjective

Carpentry. jack1(def 29).

Origin of cripple

before 950; Middle English cripel, Old English crypel; akin to creep

usage note for cripple

When referring to someone for whom it is difficult or impossible to walk or move without some kind of external aid like crutches or a wheelchair, sensitivity is called for. The words cripple and crippled are no longer considered appropriate. Although these terms have been in use since before the year 950, since the mid-1900s they have become increasingly uncommon and are now regarded as insulting. Since the late 20th century, the terms handicapped and the handicapped, once thought to be acceptable alternatives, have also become somewhat offensive. ( Handicapped remains acceptable, however, in certain set phrases like handicapped parking. ) Attempts to replace crippled with the milder euphemistic term physically challenged were sidetracked by a virtual explosion of satirical imitations like economically challenged (poor), ethically challenged (immoral), and vertically challenged (short). The currently acceptable terms are disabled and, when referring to groups, the phrase people with disabilities, or somewhat less commonly, the disabled. These terms are not only less likely to offend, they are more useful. While cripple and crippled traditionally denoted permanent impairments of one or more limbs, disabled is a broader, more comprehensive word that can refer to many different kinds of physical or mental impairments, whether temporary or permanent.
cripple and crippled are not deemed offensive when referring to an inanimate object or an animal. And cripple can be used freely as a verb, especially metaphorically, as in Failing to upgrade the computer system will cripple our business. See also retarded.

OTHER WORDS FROM cripple

crip·pler, noun crip·pling·ly, adverb un·crip·pled, adjective

Words nearby cripple

Example sentences from the Web for cripple

  • "You would not have called it a 'cripple's gait' a little while ago," interposed Mrs. Stewart.

    Cape of Storms |Percival Pollard

British Dictionary definitions for cripple

cripple
/ (ˈkrɪpəl) /

noun

offensive a person who is lame
offensive a person who is or seems disabled or deficient in some way a mental cripple
US dialect a dense thicket, usually in marshy land

verb

(tr) to make a cripple of; disable

Derived forms of cripple

crippler, noun

Word Origin for cripple

Old English crypel; related to crēopan to creep, Old Frisian kreppel a cripple, Middle Low German kröpel

Medical definitions for cripple

cripple
[ krĭpəl ]

n.

One that is partially disabled or unable to use a limb or limbs.

v.

To cause to lose the use of a limb or limbs.