irrelevant

adjective

ir·​rel·​e·​vant i-ˈre-lə-vənt 

: not relevant : inapplicable

that statement is irrelevant to your argument

irrelevantly adverb

Synonyms

• extraneous
• immaterial
• impertinent
• inapplicable
• inapposite
• irrelative

Examples of irrelevant in a Sentence

His comment is completely irrelevant.

irrelevant questions that merely disrupted the classroom lesson

Recent Examples on the Web

The reasoning is irrelevant; the curfew is non-negotiable. —Mark Travers, Forbes, 19 Jan. 2025

The lawyer also argued that his client’s conduct that day is irrelevant to his travel request. —Michael Kunzelman, Los Angeles Times, 18 Jan. 2025

Evatt has basically come up with a bold, enterprising new theory — managers are completely irrelevant. —Tim Spiers, The Athletic, 17 Jan. 2025

However, many of the results turned out to be irrelevant. —Andrew J. Whelton, CNN, 17 Jan. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1786, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

irrelevant

adjective

ir·​rel·​e·​vant (ˈ)ir-ˈ(r)el-ə-vənt 

: not relevant : not applicable or pertinent

the evidence presented was judged irrelevant to the case

irrelevance

-vən(t)s

noun

or irrelevancy

-vən-sē

irrelevantly adverb

Legal Definition

irrelevant

adjective

ir·​rel·​e·​vant ir-ˈre-lə-vənt 

: not relevant : not applicable or pertinent

irrelevant allegations

irrelevant evidence

compare immaterial

irrelevantly adverb