deactivate
verb
de·ac·ti·vate
(ˌ)dē-ˈak-tə-ˌvāt 
deactivated; deactivating; deactivates
: to make inactive or ineffective
deactivate a bomb
deactivate a chemical compound
Examples of deactivate in a Sentence
deactivate the machine carefully, or you'll risk an electric shock
Recent Examples on the Web
Enraged buyers of Spotify’s Car Thing streaming device—which the company will deactivate later this year—this week filed a class-action lawsuit against Spotify over the move.
—
Amanda Gerut, Fortune, 31 May 2024
Outlets will be deactivated except when restaurants are using them.
—Aaron Leibowitz, Miami Herald, 31 May 2024
Fox previously deactivated her Instagram account in February 2023, before returning days later to clarify that there was no cheating involved in her relationship with Machine Gun Kelly amid speculation at the time.
—Brenton Blanchet, Peoplemag, 16 May 2024
Fans speculated the two had split after Yazdi deactivated her Instagram and rejoined the social media platform leaving out Brown’s last name from her bio.
—Rebecca Aizin, Peoplemag, 21 May 2024
See all Example Sentences for deactivate 
Amanda Gerut, Fortune, 31 May 2024
Outlets will be deactivated except when restaurants are using them.
—Aaron Leibowitz, Miami Herald, 31 May 2024
Fox previously deactivated her Instagram account in February 2023, before returning days later to clarify that there was no cheating involved in her relationship with Machine Gun Kelly amid speculation at the time.
—Brenton Blanchet, Peoplemag, 16 May 2024
Fans speculated the two had split after Yazdi deactivated her Instagram and rejoined the social media platform leaving out Brown’s last name from her bio.
—Rebecca Aizin, Peoplemag, 21 May 2024
See all Example Sentences for deactivate
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'deactivate.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near deactivate
Cite this Entry
“Deactivate.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/deactivate. Accessed 7 Jun. 2024.
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Medical Definition
deactivate
transitive verb
de·ac·ti·vate
(ˈ)dē-ˈak-tə-ˌvāt
deactivated; deactivating
1
: to make inactive or ineffective
2
: to deprive of chemical activity
deactivate an enzyme
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