Meanings
plural impotences · alternative impotency
- uncountableusuallyPowerlessness; incapacity.
Near-synonyms: weakness, helplessness
2 more examples
O impotence of mind, in body ſtrong!
1671, John Milton, “Samson Agonistes, […].”, in Paradise Regain’d. A Poem. In IV Books. To which is Added, Samson Agonistes, London: […] J[ohn] M[acock] for John Starkey […], →OCLC, page 12, line 52Ideas that are not thus rooted in social needs are condemned to impotence, and this applies to all utopias and dreams of a perfect society.
1978 [1976], Leszek Kołakowski, translated by P[aul] S[teven] Falla, Main Currents of Marxism, volume II: The Golden Age, Oxford: Clarendon Press, translation of Główne nurty marksizmu: rozwój (in Polish), →ISBN, →OCLC, page 199Synonyms: weakness, helplessness
- uncountableusuallyInability to copulate or beget children; sterility, erectile dysfunction, etc.
Synonyms & antonyms
nounPowerlessness; incapacity.
More synonyms by meaning
nounthe quality of lacking strength or power; being weak and feeble
nounan inability (usually of the male animal) to copulate
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
- Latinimpotentia
- Middle Frenchimpotence
- Englishimpotence
From Middle French impotence, from Latin impotentia.
More words from Middle French, Latin
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Arabic عَنَانَة, عُنَّة
- عَنَانَة (ʕanāna)erectile dysfunction
- عُنَّة (ʕunna)erectile dysfunction
Bulgarian безсилие, импотентност
- безсилие (bezsilie)powerlessness
- импотентност (impotentnost)erectile dysfunction
Catalan impotència, impotència
- impotènciapowerlessness
- impotènciaerectile dysfunction
Czech impotence
- impotenceerectile dysfunction
Dutch impotentie
- impotentieerectile dysfunction
Finnish voimattomuus, impotenssi
- voimattomuuspowerlessness
- impotenssierectile dysfunction
French impuissance, impuissance
- impuissancepowerlessness
- impuissanceerectile dysfunction
German Machtlosigkeit, Impotenz
- Machtlosigkeitpowerlessness
- Impotenzerectile dysfunction
- Zeugungsunfähigkeiterectile dysfunction
Hindi नपुंसकता, नामर्दी
- नपुंसकता (napunsaktā)powerlessness
- नामर्दी (nāmardī)powerlessness
- नपुंसकता (napunsaktā)erectile dysfunction
- नामर्दी (nāmardī)erectile dysfunction
Hungarian impotencia
- impotenciaerectile dysfunction
Indonesian impotensi
- impotensierectile dysfunction
Norwegian Bokmål impotens
- impotenserectile dysfunction
Polish impotencja, bezsilność
- impotencjapowerlessness
- bezsilnośćpowerlessness
- bezsiłapowerlessness
- impotencjaerectile dysfunction
- niemoc płciowaerectile dysfunction
Portuguese impotência
- impotênciapowerlessness
Romanian impotență, lipsă de putere
- impotențăpowerlessness
- lipsă de puterepowerlessness
- impotențăerectile dysfunction
Russian бесси́лие, импоте́нция
- бесси́лие (bessílije)powerlessness
- импоте́нция (impoténcija)erectile dysfunction
- полово́е бесси́лие (polovóje bessílije)erectile dysfunction
- маломо́чие (malomóčije)erectile dysfunction
Spanish impotencia, impotencia
- impotenciapowerlessness
- impotenciaerectile dysfunction
Swedish impotens
- impotenserectile dysfunction
Ukrainian безси́лля, імпоте́нція
- безси́лля (bezsýllja)powerlessness
- імпоте́нція (impoténcija)erectile dysfunction
Urdu نامردی
- نامردی (nāmardī)erectile dysfunction
Cite this entry
impotence. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/impotence
“impotence.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/impotence. Accessed November 3, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “impotence,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/impotence.
Source: impotence on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.