irreparable

adjective

ir·​rep·​a·​ra·​ble i-ˈre-p(ə-)rə-bəl 

ˌi(r)-,

also nonstandard

ˌir-(r)ə-ˈper-ə-bəl 

: not reparable : irremediable

irreparable damage

irreparableness noun

irreparably

i-ˈre-p(ə-)rə-blē 

ˌi(r)-

 also nonstandard  ˌir-(r)ə-ˈper-ə-blē

adverb

Synonyms

• irreversible
• irremediable
• irretrievable

Examples of irreparable in a Sentence

The oil spill did irreparable harm to the bay.

The damage to their relationship was irreparable.

Recent Examples on the Web

Immediate, irreparable harm When the government creates a policy that might violate the Constitution or federal law, affected people can sue in federal court to stop it. —Cassandra Burke Robertson, The Conversation, 27 June 2025

Their outcomes are far from certain, and the cases might be decided only after irreparable damage has been done. —Alex Reisner, The Atlantic, 25 June 2025

But that's likely no comfort to users like Hunt, who worry that OpenAI merely retaining the data—even if it's never shared with news organizations—could cause severe and irreparable harms. —ArsTechnica, 23 June 2025

Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, warned last week that any U.S. military intervention would be met with irreparable harm. —CBS News, 22 June 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Middle French, from Latin irreparabilis, from in- + reparabilis reparable

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for irreparable

• separable
• inseparable

Kids Definition

irreparable

adjective

ir·​rep·​a·​ra·​ble (ˈ)ir-ˈ(r)ep-(ə-)rə-bəl 

: not capable of being repaired or regained

an irreparable loss

irreparably

-blē 

adverb

Legal Definition

irreparable

adjective

ir·​rep·​a·​ra·​ble i-ˈre-pə-rə-bəl, -prə-bəl 

: impossible to repair, remedy, or undo

irreparably adverb