To cause someone or something to lose the ability to move or function, or to prevent someone from taking action by stunning them emotionally.
From Greek para- (beside, amiss) + lysis (loosening); literally 'a loosening alongside normal function,' referring to the breakdown of the nervous system's ability to control muscles.
The word reveals something beautiful about neuroscience—paralysis isn't really about muscles being broken; it's about the nervous system losing its ability to communicate with muscles, like a phone that can't send signals.
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