as in incomprehensible
impossible to understand
uttered only a string of unintelligible murmurs
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Recent Examples of unintelligible
As satire, Next to Heaven is unintelligible, as though someone is universalizing their own hangups and then skewering them for clout.
—
Literary Hub, 17 Dec. 2025
The removal of Spears' Instagram account came after years of public concern and defense over her social media presence, in which the pop star has been seen posting dance videos (including with knives), sometimes with unintelligible and bizarre captions.
—Edward Segarra, USA Today, 17 Nov. 2025
The vendor said some other things that were unintelligible because of the overlap between her live speech and the lagging translation.
—Matteo Wong, The Atlantic, 16 Oct. 2025
But in an Akan language, the notion that an object could exist as a bare substrate, stripped of properties—say, the idea of a stone, with its weight, texture, and color subtracted—is basically unintelligible; the metaphysical split between a thing and its properties isn’t naturally expressible.
—Lula Konner, The New York Review of Books, 4 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for unintelligible
Literary Hub, 17 Dec. 2025
The removal of Spears' Instagram account came after years of public concern and defense over her social media presence, in which the pop star has been seen posting dance videos (including with knives), sometimes with unintelligible and bizarre captions.
—Edward Segarra, USA Today, 17 Nov. 2025
The vendor said some other things that were unintelligible because of the overlap between her live speech and the lagging translation.
—Matteo Wong, The Atlantic, 16 Oct. 2025
But in an Akan language, the notion that an object could exist as a bare substrate, stripped of properties—say, the idea of a stone, with its weight, texture, and color subtracted—is basically unintelligible; the metaphysical split between a thing and its properties isn’t naturally expressible.
—Lula Konner, The New York Review of Books, 4 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for unintelligible
Recent Examples of Synonyms for unintelligible
Adjective
-
Chloe’s arrival felt almost incomprehensible to a couple who once believed parenthood was out of reach.—
Lydia Patrick,
MSNBC Newsweek,
29 Mar. 2026
-
The permanent layoff of approximately 300 workers at the Searles Valley Minerals Trona plant will have an incomprehensible impact on our High Desert communities.—
Rosilicie Ochoa Bogh,
Oc Register,
21 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
Many joked that the clip explained years of mysterious toy discoveries beneath their own furniture.—
Daniella Gray,
MSNBC Newsweek,
31 Mar. 2026
-
Unfortunately, Grace can’t see into the mysterious, opaque little organisms until a dead one becomes translucent.—
Deana L. Weibel,
The Conversation,
31 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
This lack of strategic continuity is confusing, even for the players.—
Julia Poe,
Chicago Tribune,
28 Mar. 2026
-
The next few seconds were chaotic and confusing.—
Rachel Monroe,
New Yorker,
26 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
Yet, Tory Burch has always had the uncanny ability to peer into the future and unlock our unconscious desires.—
Vogue,
Vogue,
30 Mar. 2026
-
The Nuggets’ forwards have an uncanny habit of getting hurt all at once.—
Bennett Durando,
Denver Post,
30 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
The three-page letter is somewhat cryptic.—
Michael Kan,
PC Magazine,
26 Mar. 2026
-
The lyrics are often cryptic and clipped, but bear evidence of turbulence and tumult.—
Colin Joyce,
Pitchfork,
18 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
Costs of jet fuel are spiraling, along with more esoteric commodities such as helium.—
Matt Peterson,
CNBC,
28 Mar. 2026
-
That’s what notation makes possible — the esoteric.—
John Pavlus,
Quanta Magazine,
25 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
David Benioff wrote 25th Hour (great), Troy (good), and then Stay, this nearly impenetrable psychological thriller that plays out like The Machinist through a David Lynch filter.—
Roxana Hadadi,
Vulture,
20 Mar. 2026
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To regulators, crypto appeared as one impenetrable blur of internet scam.—
Clara Molot,
Vanity Fair,
17 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
Then men had the grit, the unfathomable grit, to claw back from a 19-point deficit to win one of the most dramatic games in the history of either team.—
Dom Amore,
Hartford Courant,
30 Mar. 2026
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The industry still cannot come to grips with the previously unfathomable scenario of the strait staying shuttered for a prolonged period of time.—
Jordan Blum,
Fortune,
28 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Unintelligible.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/unintelligible. Accessed 3 Apr. 2026.
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