inoperable

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

At night, after the bookstore closed, he, sometimes with the help of friends, pushed the inoperable vehicle into the lot at Quirky and slept in it.

From Slate • Mar. 25, 2026

New Start required the Navy to convert submarine missile tubes, making them inoperable.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 15, 2026

A mother who described her inoperable brain condition as a "ticking timebomb" said opening an "honest" bakery in a shed at her home was helping her to cope.

From BBC • Jan. 19, 2026

The damage left Los Angeles Department of Transportation officers unable to use their portable radios to call for assistance and the emergency buttons on their radios inoperable.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 29, 2025

Soon, with Gey anesthetized on the operating table, surgeons opened him up and found that the cancer was inoperable —growths covered his stomach, spleen, liver, and intestines.

From "The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks" by Rebecca Skloot