unspeakable

un·speak·able | \ ˌən-ˈspē-kə-bəl

How to pronounce unspeakable (audio)

\

Definition of unspeakable

1a : incapable of being expressed in words : unutterable

b : inexpressibly bad : horrendous unspeakable living conditions unspeakable evil

2 : that may not or cannot be spoken the bawdy thoughts that come into one's head — the unspeakable words— L. P. Smith unspeakable collections of consonants— Rosemary Jellis

Other Words from unspeakable Synonyms & Antonyms More Example Sentences Learn More about unspeakable

Keep scrolling for more

Examples of unspeakable in a Sentence

the unspeakable horror of war continually encountered unspeakable beauty in their travels through the Alps

Recent Examples on the Web Today, images of body bags and makeshift morgues vividly capture this unspeakable tragedy. — Kimberlé Williams Crenshaw, The New Republic, "When Blackness Is a Preexisting Condition," 4 May 2020 Among the protests’ supporters are stalwarts of hardline conservative politics for whom Gov. Greg Abbott's approach to the coronavirus crisis is too restrictive and Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins’ is unspeakable. — Lauren Mcgaughy, Dallas News, "The politics of protest: Organizers of anti-shutdown rallies in North Texas say efforts are homegrown," 24 Apr. 2020 That rumor had been spread by the conspiracy group QAnon, which generally has been spouting theories that the coronavirus is a hoax cooked up by the global elite to cover up unspeakable crimes. — Spencer Kornhaber, The Atlantic, "Celebrities Have Never Been Less Entertaining," 21 Mar. 2020 When unspeakable crimes and those creepy red balloons start reappearing across Derry, Mike calls the gang home to fulfill their childhood promise. — San Diego Union-Tribune, "Review: Overlong ‘It Chapter Two’ confronts scarier evils than Pennywise the clown," 5 Sep. 2019 When unspeakable crimes and those creepy red balloons start reappearing across Derry, Mike calls the gang home to fulfill their childhood promise. — Jen Yamatostaff Writer, Los Angeles Times, "Review: Overlong ‘It Chapter Two’ confronts scarier evils than Pennywise the clown," 3 Sep. 2019 To give up on the fight against the coronavirus at this stage is to condemn an unspeakable number of Americans to death. — Haley Weiss, The Atlantic, "What You Need to Know About the Coronavirus," 12 Mar. 2020 This is an unspeakable violation of human decency, respect, and of the privacy rights of the victims and their families. — Moná Thomas, refinery29.com, "Vanessa Bryant Condemns First Responders Who Allegedly Shared Photos Of The Crash Site," 2 Mar. 2020 Those antics ranged from Reckless wearing devil's horns to unspeakable acts involving baby dolls. — Ed Masley, azcentral, "Remembering Doug Clark, a mysterious icon of the Phoenix punk music underground," 27 Mar. 2020

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

Keep scrolling for more

Learn More about unspeakable

Dictionary Entries near unspeakable

unspeakableness

Statistics for unspeakable

Last Updated

12 May 2020

Cite this Entry

“Unspeakable.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/unspeakable. Accessed 29 May. 2020.

Keep scrolling for more

More Definitions for unspeakable

unspeakable

adjective

English Language Learners Definition of unspeakable

: very bad or evil

: impossible to describe in words

See the full definition for unspeakable in the English Language Learners Dictionary

unspeakable

un·speak·able | \ ˌən-ˈspē-kə-bəl

\

Kids Definition of unspeakable

1 : impossible to express in words unspeakable beauty

2 : extremely bad unspeakable conduct

Keep scrolling for more

WORD OF THE DAY

assail

See Definitions and Examples »

Test Your Vocabulary

May 2020 Words of the Day Quiz

Which is a synonym of exiguous?

Can you spell these 10 commonly misspelled words?

Test Your Knowledge - and learn some interesting things along the way.