The Collaborative International Dictionary
inactivate \inactivate\ v. t. [imp. & p. p. inactivated; p. pr. & vb. n. inactivating.] to make inactive; as, boiling will inactivate most enzymes; acetylation of the antibiotic inactivated it.
Syn: deactivate.
Note: To inactivate an enzyme or chemical usually renders it permanently inactive; to inactivate a machine (as by turning a switch) may be reversible, and for machines and devices, the term deactivate is usually used. The distinction is worth preserving.
Wiktionary
vb. (present participle of inactivate English)
Usage examples of "inactivating".
I fetched her down by inactivating the ghost and switching to a preset landing mode.
Until such time as a means of completely inactivating it can be devised, it has been decided to send it offworld, where it cannot fall into the wrong hands and cannot raise again its own specific dangers.
We even had a reasonable discussion just the other day-no shouting, no recrimination-about her delay in inactivating the Guardian Robots.