verb
maim
MAYM/meɪm/
To injure someone severely, causing lasting physical damage.
The adult has been maimed and now practices walking with a lower-leg prosthesis.
Etymology
Mahaignier already meant to wound or cripple; its deeper origin is uncertain. In older law, maiming meant depriving someone of a limb's use, emphasizing disabling injury rather than a wound alone.
In context
Razor wire is designed to maim and kill.
More examples
- Land mines kill or maim civilians long after wars end.
- The crash maimed him, leaving him unable to walk.
- Safety guards help prevent machinery from maiming workers.
Forms
maim · maims · maimed · maiming
Similar words
- injure
- Does not necessarily imply severe or lasting physical damage.
- mutilate
- Emphasizes severe damage to or loss of body parts.
- disable
- Emphasizes loss of physical ability rather than the injury itself.