unnameable
adjective
un·name·able
ˌən-ˈnā-mə-bəl 
variants
or less commonly unnamable
: not worthy or capable to be given a name or identified by name : not nameable
an unnameable quality
… that unnamable and unmistakable terror was in her eyes …—
Jack London
Jack LondonHe [Jim Morrison] had the unnameable thing that people will always be drawn to.—Marilyn Manson
Marilyn MansonExamples of unnameable in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
And the unnameable beauty of not knowing how any of it works.
—Devin Kelly, Longreads, 7 Mar. 2024
Out of the silence, the sisters would produce shelves of books between them—consumed with naming the unnameable, with writing into the dark.
—Parul Sehgal, The New Yorker, 14 Aug. 2023
They’re not meant to be as simple girlfriends, but ever since Rei killed Nanae’s abusive boyfriend as a gesture of compassion, there’s been an unnameable charge between the two women greater than friendship and short of love.
—Charles Bramesco, Vulture, 20 Apr. 2021
Much of the story is about this dichotomy: the unnameable mystery and our attempts to codify it in language and superstition.
—Cressida Leyshon, The New Yorker, 26 Dec. 2022
Confederates reaches for and catches different, unnameable things.
—Helen Shaw, Vulture, 28 Mar. 2022
Together, the two lovers found the answer to that unnameable desire: home. Jari and Sómr are inspired by two developers: Sam Handrick and Jake Snipes.
—Laken Brooks, Forbes, 18 Dec. 2022
Sesame seed paste, on the other hand, fortifies a soup with mellow, unnameable notes of earthiness rather than overpowering it with potency or sweetness.
—Mehreen Karim, Bon Appétit, 1 Mar. 2022
At the university that day, unnameable emotions abounded.
—Sarah Larson, The New Yorker, 25 Oct. 2021
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Devin Kelly, Longreads, 7 Mar. 2024
Out of the silence, the sisters would produce shelves of books between them—consumed with naming the unnameable, with writing into the dark.
—Parul Sehgal, The New Yorker, 14 Aug. 2023
They’re not meant to be as simple girlfriends, but ever since Rei killed Nanae’s abusive boyfriend as a gesture of compassion, there’s been an unnameable charge between the two women greater than friendship and short of love.
—Charles Bramesco, Vulture, 20 Apr. 2021
Much of the story is about this dichotomy: the unnameable mystery and our attempts to codify it in language and superstition.
—Cressida Leyshon, The New Yorker, 26 Dec. 2022
Confederates reaches for and catches different, unnameable things.
—Helen Shaw, Vulture, 28 Mar. 2022
Together, the two lovers found the answer to that unnameable desire: home. Jari and Sómr are inspired by two developers: Sam Handrick and Jake Snipes.
—Laken Brooks, Forbes, 18 Dec. 2022
Sesame seed paste, on the other hand, fortifies a soup with mellow, unnameable notes of earthiness rather than overpowering it with potency or sweetness.
—Mehreen Karim, Bon Appétit, 1 Mar. 2022
At the university that day, unnameable emotions abounded.
—Sarah Larson, The New Yorker, 25 Oct. 2021
Cite this Entry
“Unnameable.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/unnameable. Accessed 12 Jul. 2025.
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