inanimate

[ in-an-uh-mit ]

adjective

1. not animate; lifeless.

   Synonyms: dead, inert, mineral, vegetable, inorganic

2. spiritless; sluggish; dull.

   Synonyms: torpid, dormant, inactive

3. Linguistics. belonging to a syntactic category or having a semantic feature that is characteristic of words denoting objects, concepts, and beings regarded as lacking perception and volition ( animate ).

inanimate

/ ɪnˌænɪˈmeɪʃən; ɪnˈænɪmɪt /

adjective

1. lacking the qualities or features of living beings; not animate

   inanimate objects

2. lacking any sign of life or consciousness; appearing dead
3. lacking vitality; spiritless; dull

Derived Forms

• inˈanimately, adverb
• inˈanimateness, noun

Other Words From

• in·ani·mate·ly adverb
• in·ani·mate·ness in·an·i·ma·tion [in-an-, uh, -, mey, -sh, uh, n], noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of inanimate¹

From the Late Latin word inanimātus, dating back to 1555–65. See in- ³, animate

Example Sentences

Having written for Saturday Night Live, Torres’ signature style is deadpan humor, whether in stand-up or while inventing lifelike stories for inanimate objects.

From Ozy

I hate to personify an inanimate object, but I think we owe the sandwich a debt of gratitude.

From Washington Post

Some biologists think of them as quasi-alive, while others refer to them as inanimate tiny particles or arrangements of matter.

From Nautilus

That perspective considers all forms of matter, both animate and inanimate.

From Nautilus

While inanimate matter doesn’t evolve like animate matter, inanimate matter does behave.

From Nautilus

He sits in dark corners of the narrative, a bit inanimate, like a broken chair marring a finely furnished room.

From The Daily Beast

But it is important to recall that even inanimate objects contain stories.

From The Daily Beast

She has been reduced to porter, to Sherpa, to something even less–some inanimate bit of set decoration.

From The Daily Beast

“Thank God for my computer,” says the star, who often films personal “video diaries” with her inanimate friend.

From The Daily Beast

Firearms, after all, are inanimate objects, incapable of inflicting harm on their own initiative.

From The Daily Beast

And then the whole meaning—or the lack of meaning—of their inanimate lives was revealed to him.

From Project Gutenberg

As the Mother of Sorrows she will weep over His inanimate body taken down from the cross.

From Project Gutenberg

Imagine his agony at the sight of his mother,—pale, inanimate, and from time to time writhing under a convulsive chill.

From Project Gutenberg

How a human touch colors the inanimate world with the communicated warmth of its enchantment!

From Project Gutenberg

The homelessness of men, and even of inanimate vessels, cast away upon strange shores, came strongly in upon my mind.

From Project Gutenberg