A sudden power surge can paralyze the entire subway system, stranding thousands of commuters underground.
突然的电力激增可能使整个地铁系统瘫痪，导致数千名通勤者滞留在地下。
Which choice best defines “paralyze”?
D — To make unable to move or act. “paralyze” means to make unable to move or act.
Which word means “to make unable to move or act”?
A — paralyze. “paralyze” means to make unable to move or act.
paralyze — to make unable to move or act. In Chinese: 使瘫痪.
paralyze is pronounced /ˈpærəlaɪz/.
A sudden power surge can paralyze the entire subway system, stranding thousands of commuters underground. (突然的电力激增可能使整个地铁系统瘫痪，导致数千名通勤者滞留在地下。)
immobilize, disable, cripple — all close in meaning to paralyze (to make unable to move or act).
activate, liberate — each the opposite of paralyze (to make unable to move or act).
Yes. paralyze is on the SAT Prep Basic list — the everyday academic words the SAT assumes you already have. The Digital SAT does not test vocabulary in isolation; words like this one are tested through Words in Context questions, where you choose the word that completes a passage most logically and precisely.