unendurable

adjective

un·​en·​dur·​able ˌən-in-ˈdu̇r-ə-bəl 

-ˈdyu̇r-,

-en-

: too unpleasant, painful, or difficult to accept or endure : not endurable : unbearable

unendurable suffering

… periods of unendurable stress and desperation.

—Oliver Sacks

unendurably

ˌən-in-ˈdu̇r-ə-blē 

-ˈdyu̇r-

-en-

adverb

an unendurably boring speech

unendurableness noun

Synonyms

• insufferable
• insupportable
• intolerable
• unbearable
• unsupportable

Examples of unendurable in a Sentence

people used to travel along this stretch of the highway by night so as to avoid the unendurable heat of the day

Recent Examples on the Web

Without which the last phase of my mum’s life would have been unendurable. —Geoff Dyer, Harpers Magazine, 28 Mar. 2025

The best among us rarely know what to say, how to look, how to be there for a friend who is enduring something unendurable. —Amanda Nguyen, TIME, 3 Mar. 2025

Promises her who knows what, seeing that she’s got to drink herself to oblivion constantly and choke down pills for her unendurable pain. —Christian Kracht, Harper's Magazine, 2 Nov. 2024

The 23-year-old captive’s parents showed all the anguish and anxiety that would befall anyone in their unendurable position. —Noah Rothman, National Review, 3 Sep. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1801, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for unendurable

• endurable
• incurable
• insurable
• nondurable
• procurable
• curable
• durable