stultify

[ stuhl-tuh-fahy ]
See synonyms for stultify on Thesaurus.com
verb (used with object),stul·ti·fied, stul·ti·fy·ing.
  1. to render absurdly or wholly futile or ineffectual, especially by degrading or frustrating means: Must we stultify the progress of these reforms with yet more red tape?

  2. Law. to allege or prove (oneself or another person) to be of unsound mind.

  1. Older Use. to make, or cause to appear, foolish or ridiculous.

verb (used without object),stul·ti·fied, stul·ti·fy·ing.
  1. to become ineffectual or impaired, especially through frustrating, stifling, or deadening conditions: Without an environment of encouragement and creativity, the mind can stultify.

Origin of stultify

1
First recorded in 1760–70; from Late Latin stultificāre, equivalent to Latin stult(us) “stupid” + -i- -i- + -ficāre -fy

Other words for stultify

Other words from stultify

  • stul·ti·fi·ca·tion [stuhl-tuh-fi-key-shuhn], /ˌstʌl tə fɪˈkeɪ ʃən/, noun
  • stul·ti·fi·er, noun
  • stul·ti·fy·ing·ly, adverb
  • non·stul·ti·fi·ca·tion, noun
  • un·stul·ti·fied, adjective
  • un·stul·ti·fy·ing, adjective

Words Nearby stultify

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use stultify in a sentence

  • It occurred to him that modern education existed largely to stultify independent thought.

    Security | Poul William Anderson
  • "To thank men like Cowan, who did not desire to enfranchise woman any more than the negro, was to stultify ourselves," he said.

  • The latter has allowed its prejudices and its feelings to obliterate or to stultify its reason.

  • Link-torches, unless of the best pitch-pine (Pinus resinosa), do not burn with sufficient brightness to stultify the pigeons.

    The Hunters' Feast | Mayne Reid
  • As she took a step towards the bridge-tables, Jack felt that he was losing her; yet he would only stultify himself by an apology.

    Lady Lilith | Stephen McKenna

British Dictionary definitions for stultify

stultify

/ (ˈstʌltɪˌfaɪ) /


verb-fies, -fying or -fied (tr)
  1. to make useless, futile, or ineffectual, esp by routine

  2. to cause to appear absurd or inconsistent

  1. to prove (someone) to be of unsound mind and thus not legally responsible

Origin of stultify

1
C18: from Latin stultus stupid + facere to make

Derived forms of stultify

  • stultification, noun
  • stultifier, noun

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012