IMPAIR Synonyms: 96 Similar and Opposite Words

Q: How is the word 'impair' distinct from other similar verbs?

Some common synonyms of impair are damage , harm , hurt , injure , and mar . While all these words mean "to affect injuriously," impair suggests a making less complete or efficient by deterioration or diminution. // years of smoking had impaired his health

Q: In what contexts can 'damage' take the place of 'impair'?

The meanings of damage and impair largely overlap; however, damage suggests injury that lowers value or impairs usefulness. // a table damaged in shipping

Q: When might 'harm' be a better fit than 'impair'?

While the synonyms harm and impair are close in meaning, harm often stresses the inflicting of pain, suffering, or loss. // careful not to harm the animals

Q: When could 'hurt' be used to replace 'impair'?

The words hurt and impair are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, hurt implies inflicting a wound to the body or to the feelings. // hurt by their callous remarks

Q: When is 'injure' a more appropriate choice than 'impair'?

Although the words injure and impair have much in common, injure implies the inflicting of anything detrimental to one's looks, comfort, health, or success. // badly injured in an accident

Q: When would 'mar' be a good substitute for 'impair'?

While in some cases nearly identical to impair , mar applies to injury that spoils perfection (as of a surface) or causes disfigurement. // the text is marred by many typos

impair

verb

im-ˈper

Definition of impair

as in to injure

to reduce the soundness, effectiveness, or perfection of already impaired by a crack, the windshield shattered upon impact with the baseball

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Synonym Chooser

How is the word impair distinct from other similar verbs?

Some common synonyms of impair are damage, harm, hurt, injure, and mar. While all these words mean "to affect injuriously," impair suggests a making less complete or efficient by deterioration or diminution.

years of smoking had impaired his health

In what contexts can damage take the place of impair?

The meanings of damage and impair largely overlap; however, damage suggests injury that lowers value or impairs usefulness.

a table damaged in shipping

When might harm be a better fit than impair?

While the synonyms harm and impair are close in meaning, harm often stresses the inflicting of pain, suffering, or loss.

careful not to harm the animals

When could hurt be used to replace impair?

The words hurt and impair are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, hurt implies inflicting a wound to the body or to the feelings.

hurt by their callous remarks

When is injure a more appropriate choice than impair?

Although the words injure and impair have much in common, injure implies the inflicting of anything detrimental to one's looks, comfort, health, or success.

badly injured in an accident

When would mar be a good substitute for impair?

While in some cases nearly identical to impair, mar applies to injury that spoils perfection (as of a surface) or causes disfigurement.

the text is marred by many typos

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of impair The appearance came four years after Curry suffered a major stroke that impaired his mobility. — Dave Quinn, PEOPLE, 27 Aug. 2026 Comptroller Phil Diamond has said a minimum of $300 million should be held in reserve to protect against tourism market downturns that could impair the county’s ability to pay for its ongoing obligations. — Stephen Hudak, The Orlando Sentinel, 26 Aug. 2026 Genetic deviations that impair the processing of alcohol turn out to be associated with lower rates of alcoholism. — Shayla Love, New Yorker, 26 Aug. 2026 The task is to match instruments to problems and restore financial stability to its proper place in the Fed’s framework, without unnecessarily impairing the capital formation on which America’s long-run competitiveness may depend. — Joao Gomes, Fortune, 25 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for impair

Recent Examples of Synonyms for impair

Verb

Hobbs has not practiced since mid-August, Green was injured in the second preseason game and Prysock went down in the finale.

— Matt Barrows, New York Times, 31 Aug. 2026
Park was awarded a Purple Heart, a distinction for those injured or killed in combat.

— Brad Lendon, CNN Money, 31 Aug. 2026

Definition of injure

Verb

The missile killed four sailors and damaged the ship’s equipment, but the crew contained the damage and the Hanit limped home.

— HOLMES LIAO, Foreign Affairs, 4 Sep. 2026
Desalination plants in the Gulf have been targeted and damaged during the US-Iran war, raising significant alarm in a region that depends overwhelmingly on this technology.

— Laura Paddison, CNN Money, 4 Sep. 2026

Definition of damage

Verb

Even if Korea can maintain 2% economic growth over the next two decades, consumption growth gradually weakens and eventually turns negative, according to Goldman’s long-term modeling.

— Mia Osmonbekov, Fortune, 30 Aug. 2026
Riggs said the Teamsters’ safety argument is weakened by the inconsistent safety record of human truck drivers, who have fallen asleep at the wheel or driven while distracted or otherwise impaired.

— Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 29 Aug. 2026

Definition of weaken

Verb

The administration did cripple Iran's nuclear program in 2025 with bombing strikes on various facilities, but since this war began, there's been no effective action taken against its nuclear program.

— Dana Taylor, USA Today, 28 Aug. 2026
Shortages of Patriot air defenses leave Ukraine vulnerable as Russia repeatedly builds missile stockpiles, targets energy and private businesses, and seeks to cripple the economy ahead of winter.

— Hanna Arhirova, Los Angeles Times, 27 Aug. 2026

Definition of cripple

Verb

Olsen certainly hurt those around him, too, growing up, especially as his addiction spiraled and his platonic, romantic and familial relationships fell apart.

— David Oliver, USA Today, 2 Sep. 2026
Higher yields and rates, meanwhile, tend to hurt people who are borrowing money.

— Christopher Rugaber, Los Angeles Times, 2 Sep. 2026

Definition of hurt

Verb

Researchers also need to determine whether damage can recover without compromising superconducting performance.

— Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 5 Sep. 2026
The victims were told their bank account, Social Security number or other personal information had been compromised.

— Harriet Ramos, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 4 Sep. 2026

Definition of compromise

Browse Nearby Words

impacts

impair

impaired

See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

Style

“Impair.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/impair. Accessed 5 Sep. 2026.

Copy Citation

Synonyms of impair

verb

Synonym Chooser

Example Sentences

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

matriculate

Popular in Grammar & Usage

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

A List of Most Commonly Confused Words

Why do we use apostrophes to show possession?

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?

Popular in Wordplay

The Longest Long Words List

Stay Woke

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Words of the Week - Sept. 4

Popular

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

The Longest Long Words List

Stay Woke

Games & Quizzes