incomprehensible

adjective in·com·pre·hen·si·ble \ (ˌ)in-ˌkäm-pri-ˈhen(t)-sə-bəl \

Updated on: 20 May 2018

Definition of incomprehensible

1 archaic : having or subject to no limits

2 : impossible to comprehend : unintelligible

incomprehensible instructions

—

incomprehensibility

play \(ˌ)in-ˌkäm-pri-ˌhen(t)-sə-ˈbi-lə-tē\ noun

—

incomprehensibleness

noun

—

incomprehensibly

play \(ˌ)in-ˌkäm-pri-ˈhen(t)-sə-blē\ adverb

See incomprehensible defined for English-language learners

See incomprehensible defined for kids

Examples of incomprehensible in a Sentence

I found his behavior utterly incomprehensible.
It's incomprehensible to me that he could have acted that way.

Recent Examples of incomprehensible from the Web

And simultaneous translating is quite tricky between the specifics prized in English and the vague, often intentionally incomprehensible generalities that are laced through Asian languages to avoid offense.

— andrew malcolm, San Francisco Chronicle, "Trump’s Korea initiative is risky and unprecedented," 2 May 2018
The final two lines of Vicente's letter were incomprehensible, a jumble of letters.

— francisco cantú, GQ, "Confessions of a Former Border Patrol Agent," 30 Jan. 2018
And yes, a pestilence-ravaged, emaciated Prior, abandoned by Louis, his squeamish lover, can have his ceiling crack in two as an Angel (Francesca Faridany) bursts through, endowing him with a terrible, incomprehensible prophecy.

— lily janiak, San Francisco Chronicle, "Berkeley Rep revives ‘Angels in America,’ in all its soaring spirit," 29 Apr. 2018
But the local ranchers, who manage spreads of 10,000 acres with one family, find a proposal for 730 agricultural workers and a slightly greater supporting population incomprehensible and threatening.

— david sarasohn, The New Republic, "Antelope’s Last Stand," 12 Apr. 2018
Parkland has raised awareness that school shootings are incomprehensible and must stop, as must all incidents of domestic terror involving guns.

— lincoln anthony blades, Teen Vogue, "Police Shootings Are Gun Violence, Too," 29 Mar. 2018
All three, nearly at once: almost incomprehensible.

— arika herron, Indianapolis Star, "Community rocked by tragedy gets back on its feet with help from basketball team," 11 Mar. 2018
The fear is not so much of devices that stop obeying instructions and instead follow their own agenda, but rather of something that does what it is told (or, at least, attempts to do so), but does it in a way that is incomprehensible.

— The Economist, "AI in societyFor artificial intelligence to thrive, it must explain itself," 15 Feb. 2018
Against Russia's remorseless determination in supporting Assad, US policy in Syria was hesitant and cautious during the Obama Administration and has been incomprehensible since.

— tim lister, CNN, "Syria strikes: The real impact is in Moscow," 14 Apr. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'incomprehensible.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.