1
as in hopeless
not capable of being cured or reformed
an irretrievable drug addict who had wasted a once-promising life
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2
as in irreparable
not capable of being repaired, regained, or undone
this is just an irretrievable mess, so let's start all over again
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Recent Examples of irretrievable
Given enough machinery and labor, roads were not irretrievable after all.
—
Ben Goldfarb, Smithsonian Magazine, 13 Feb. 2024
Many families, including some of Peter’s relatives, found ways to channel their grief to salvage something from their irretrievable loss.
—Amy Qin, New York Times, 11 Feb. 2024
Adam’s childhood home (remarkably, the same house in which Haigh himself grew up) is a maze of personal mysteries: old clothes, faded photographs and other relics of a palpable yet irretrievable past.
—Justin Chang, Los Angeles Times, 20 Dec. 2023
But Israelis intuitively understand that if this round of fighting ends with one more stalemate, then our military deterrence—shattered by the mass but intimate butchery of Oct. 7—could be irretrievable.
—Yossi Klein Halevi, WSJ, 3 Nov. 2023
See all Example Sentences for irretrievable 
Ben Goldfarb, Smithsonian Magazine, 13 Feb. 2024
Many families, including some of Peter’s relatives, found ways to channel their grief to salvage something from their irretrievable loss.
—Amy Qin, New York Times, 11 Feb. 2024
Adam’s childhood home (remarkably, the same house in which Haigh himself grew up) is a maze of personal mysteries: old clothes, faded photographs and other relics of a palpable yet irretrievable past.
—Justin Chang, Los Angeles Times, 20 Dec. 2023
But Israelis intuitively understand that if this round of fighting ends with one more stalemate, then our military deterrence—shattered by the mass but intimate butchery of Oct. 7—could be irretrievable.
—Yossi Klein Halevi, WSJ, 3 Nov. 2023
See all Example Sentences for irretrievable
Recent Examples of Synonyms for irretrievable
Adjective
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Limit Media Exposure Without Putting Your Head in the Sand Staying informed is essential for leaders, but constantly consuming the news can leave you feeling overwhelmed and hopeless.—
Amy Blankson,
Forbes,
20 Jan. 2025
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Collette plays Muriel, who escapes from her hopeless life via her devoted fandom to the Swedish supergroup.—
Mark Olsen,
Los Angeles Times,
17 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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Hunt Realty argues the alignment will cause irreparable harm to the Reunion development and hinder long-term economic opportunities in downtown Dallas.—
Gordon G. Chang,
Newsweek,
24 Jan. 2025
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The Justice Department insisted that putting the deadline on ice would cause irreparable harm.—
Zach Schonfeld,
The Hill,
23 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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Richards had revealed in early 2024 that she’d been diagnosed with glioblastoma, an incurable brain cancer.—
Emily Tannenbaum,
Glamour,
20 Jan. 2025
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While Richards’ family did not disclose her cause of death in the statement, Richards spoke openly with CNN’s Anderson Cooper last June about her battle with glioblastoma– an aggressive type of brain cancer that is incurable and has a survival rate of 12 to 18 months.—
Michelle Krupa,
CNN,
20 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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Nevertheless, the data is a glaring reminder that the planet is inching closer to irreversible damage.—
Rachel Frazin,
The Hill,
14 Jan. 2025
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The Japanese Foreign Ministry has warned that the country has until about 2030 before the trend is irreversible.—
Paul Du Quenoy,
Newsweek,
9 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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During the Kursk operation, the enemy has already lost over 38,000 soldiers in this single direction alone, with approximately 15,000 of them irrecoverable losses.—
Kevin Lynn,
Newsweek,
7 Jan. 2025
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This kind of situation occurs when irrecoverable past investments drive decisions, even when those costs are irrelevant to future outcomes.—
Shanna Apitz,
Forbes,
19 Dec. 2024
Adjective
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The damaged flight data recorder had been deemed unrecoverable for data extraction by South Korean authorities, who sent it to the United States for analysis at the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board laboratory.—
Paolo Confino,
Fortune Asia,
11 Jan. 2025
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Only the heart’s memory, a delicate thread that binds us to eternity, tries to recover the unrecoverable — the fleeting moment with its mood, colors, and sounds.—
Andriy Sodomora (Tr. Sabrina Jaszi & Roman Ivashkiv),
The Dial,
12 Dec. 2024
Adjective
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Many thought that a healthy forest would never thrive in impoverished, mercury-laden topsoil and that the piles of sandy tailings, the residue from the gold mining effort, and the pools of wastewater were irremediable.—
Simeon Tegel,
NPR,
2 Apr. 2024
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For example, if a package containing plasma is left outside during extreme weather conditions, like 20 degrees below freezing in Boston or 115-degree heat in Arizona, the contents could suffer irremediable damage that renders them unsafe for use.—
Guy Yehiav,
Forbes,
22 Feb. 2024
Adjective
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Onstage, Madigan presents herself as an incorrigible life-of the-party type.—
John Roy,
Vulture,
14 Jan. 2025
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For those who know Celine, two things repeatedly come to mind: her irrepressible smile and her incorrigible fight.—
Megan Feringa,
The Athletic,
2 Jan. 2025
Thesaurus Entries Near irretrievable
Cite this Entry
“Irretrievable.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/irretrievable. Accessed 30 Jan. 2025.
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