impotent
AdjectiveUS[im-puh-tuhnt]/ˈɪmpətənt/3 syllables
Open English WordNet
Adjective (2)
- lacking power or ability“Technology without morality is barbarous; morality without technology is impotent — Freeman J.Dyson”“felt impotent rage”Opposite potentSimilar impuissant, effete, ineffectiveRelates to potency, effectivenessSee also sterile, powerless
- (of a male) unable to copulateOpposite potent
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inexorableadjective
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Webster's Dictionary (1913)
Im′po·tent adjective
Origin: F. impotent, L. impotens, -entis; pref. im- not + potens potent, powerful. See Potent.
1. Not potent; wanting power, strength. or vigor. whether physical, intellectual, or moral; deficient in capacity; destitute of force; weak; feeble; infirm.
There sat a certain man at Lystra, impotent inhis feet.— Acts xiv. 8.
O most lame and impotent conclusion!— William Shakespeare
Not slow to hear, Nor impotent to save.— Joseph Addison
2. Wanting the power of self-restraint; incontrolled; ungovernable; violent.
Impotent of tongue, her silence broke.— John Dryden
3. Medicine Wanting the power of procreation; unable to copulate; also, sometimes, sterile; barren; specifically, in males: unable to achieve or sustain a penile erection.
Im′po·tent noun
One who is impotent. rare William Shakespeare
Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913), from GCIDE 0.54 · with additions: +PJC