invisible

1 of 2

adjective

in·​vis·​i·​ble (ˌ)in-ˈvi-zə-bəl 

1

a

: incapable by nature of being seen : not perceptible by vision

a movie about an invisible man

invisible ultraviolet light

b

: inaccessible to view : hidden

an invisible hinge

also : not marked by outward signs

an invisible illness

c

: not openly acknowledged or made known

Had I offended him? Did I cross an invisible line?

—Denis Wilson

There are still invisible barriers and glass ceilings which discourage women from studying STEM fields …

—Forbes (online)

d

: not able to be recognized or identified

an invisible enemy/threat

… deepened their belief that invisible forces were out to control them …

—Luke Mogelson

2

: of such small size or unobtrusive quality as to be hardly noticeable : inconspicuous

an invisible scar

… offering consumers invisible braces that can straighten their smiles in a matter of months without them having to visit the orthodontist …

—Danielle Jackson

3

: not noticed or acknowledged : treated as if invisible : overlooked

To now dominate in an industry that a year ago I was invisible in … is something I unapologetically take great pride in.

—Fallon Gregory

… highlighting the narratives of society's most underserved and invisible groups.

—Kevin Varzandeh

4

a

: not appearing in published financial statements

invisible assets

b

: not reflected in statistics

Teaching English to foreign visitors is estimated to be Britain's sixth largest invisible export …

—The Economist

invisibility

(ˌ)in-ˌvi-zə-ˈbi-lə-tē 

noun

invisibleness

(ˌ)in-ˈvi-zə-bəl-nəs 

noun

invisibly

(ˌ)in-ˈvi-zə-blē 

adverb

invisible

2 of 2

noun

plural invisibles

: an invisible person or thing : someone or something that cannot be seen or perceived

… the significant aspect of his reign, its failure of concern for the religious crisis, has been overlooked as the invisibles of history usually are.

—Barbara W. Tuchman

"There are too many invisibles in the ad business. It depends too much on intangible relationships and chemistry."

—Helen Ver Standig

Synonyms

Adjective

• discreet
• inconspicuous
• unnoticeable
• unobtrusive

Examples of invisible in a Sentence

Adjective

a thriller about an invisible man

With the telescope we can see details of the planet's surface that are ordinarily invisible.

She feels as if her success is being blocked by an invisible barrier.

Homelessness is no longer an invisible problem for this city.

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

During a total solar eclipse in 1868, a French astronomer became the first person to observe helium, spotting the element in the spectrum of the usually invisible corona. —Yaakov Zinberg, Smithsonian Magazine, 4 Apr. 2024

After years of holding community meetings and knocking on doors, community activists are now seeing action about an invisible risk raising concerns about cancer in their communities. —Laura Coburn, ABC News, 3 Apr. 2024

In my fictional town, the have-nots are all outside PV’s high walls and therefore invisible. —Paula L. Woods, Los Angeles Times, 3 Apr. 2024

Historical structures buried over time may be invisible to the naked eye, the researchers said, but can be found and reconstructed using LiDAR with extreme precision, also preventing potential damage from an excavation. —Irene Wright, Miami Herald, 2 Apr. 2024

The eerily perfect replacement of our sun’s disk by an equal-size black orb, followed by the startling appearance of previously invisible and dramatic regions of illumination surrounding it—that kind of eclipse demands very particular conditions. —Adam Frank, The Atlantic, 1 Apr. 2024

In much of the city, the wells are like doorbells, plentiful but seemingly invisible until someone points them out. —Damien Cave Atul Loke, New York Times, 31 Mar. 2024

Public health experts warn about a buildup of invisible conditions, limiting children’s development and causing early deaths. —Peter Guest, WIRED, 26 Mar. 2024

Enter Gabriel Mercier at The Barcelona Institute of Science and Technology in Spain and colleagues who have built transparent photodetectors that can make cameras more or less invisible. —The Physics Arxiv Blog, Discover Magazine, 21 Mar. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Adjective

Middle English, from Anglo-French, from Latin invisibilis, from in- + visibilis visible

First Known Use

Adjective

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Noun

1635, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing invisible

• invisible hand
• invisible ink

Kids Definition

invisible

adjective

in·​vis·​i·​ble (ˈ)in-ˈviz-ə-bəl 

1

: impossible to see

sound is invisible

2

: being so small or slight as to be hardly noticeable

an invisible error

invisibility

(ˌ)in-ˌviz-ə-ˈbil-ət-ē 

noun

invisibly

(ˈ)in-ˈviz-ə-blē 

adverb