Hamstrung

Part of speech: adjective

Definitions

1. Being rendered powerless or ineffective due to constraints or challenges
2. Experiencing significant limitations that diminish one's ability to perform tasks or achieve objectives
3. Having been physically injured or disabled, especially in the legs ; facing such severe restrictions that ability to act or perform is greatly reduced

Etymology: "Hamstrung" is the past form of "hamstring," so its story lies in the verb. A hamstring is the tendon behind the knee, and the word joins "ham," a word for the back of the knee joint, with "string," meaning the sinew or cord. Cutting that cord leaves a limb unable to bear weight or move properly, which is why the verb came to mean disabling someone or something by crippling it. The figurative sense of "severely limited ability" grows directly from that literal injury. A creature or person whose hamstrings were cut could no longer walk or run effectively, so the picture of being crippled in the legs carried over to any effort or plan that has been cut down to powerlessness. The adjective uses that same image, describing someone or something rendered unable to act freely.

Synonyms: crippled, hindered, impeded, restricted, limited

Antonyms: enabled, empowered, facilitated, unrestricted, liberated