Kafkaesque

adjective

Definition of Kafkaesquenext
1
as in surreal

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Dissimilar Words
2
as in incomprehensible

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Dissimilar Words

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of Kafkaesque For the average soccer fan, the quest for 2026 World Cup tickets started last year when FIFA opened its Kafkaesque lottery system. — Natalie B. Compton, Washington Post, 5 June 2026 Much of the book hovers on the edge of reality before diving into moments of Kafkaesque disorder. — Via Catapult, Literary Hub, 5 June 2026 On some level, Hasna senses that such a soulless, Kafkaesque environment has to be hiding worse evils than paycheck withholding and infrequent bathroom breaks. — Christian Zilko, IndieWire, 18 May 2026 One major limiting factor for figure skating’s broadcast opportunities has been the sport’s reliance on music, the licensing for which has required Kafkaesque levels of clearance, even in the lead-up to Milan. — Sara Germano, Sportico.com, 24 Mar. 2026 The funniest scenes in One Battle After Another find Leonardo DiCaprio’s explosives expert locked in a Kafkaesque squabble with an operator on a revolutionary hotline. — Craigh Barboza, HollywoodReporter, 15 Mar. 2026 Since then, bank customers have complained that they’re still getting cut out of the financial system, but that firms won’t say why — leaving them in a Kafkaesque limbo. — Tom Schoenberg, Bloomberg, 12 Mar. 2026 The high court agreed, in a 5-4 decision with Kafkaesque logic. — Joe Mathews, Mercury News, 10 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for Kafkaesque
  1. surreal
  2. incomprehensible
  3. unusual
  4. inexplicable
  5. irrational
  6. unfathomable
  7. strange
  8. unintelligible
Adjective
  • Watching a giant blue bull move through the Nevada desert feels surreal, and with Ukrainian collaborators building it, the piece strongly shows cultural identity and resilience.
    — Jim Dobson, Forbes.com, 29 Aug. 2026
  • Ballet served as the starting point, with its codes translated across footwear and apparel into a more expansive, surreal sphere.
    — Jaden Thompson, Footwear News, 28 Aug. 2026
Definition of surreal
Adjective
  • War of the Worlds fuses post-9/11 paranoia and the terror of parenting to create one of Spielberg’s most thrilling blockbusters with a dark, genuinely scary atmosphere of ordinary people being wiped out by incomprehensible tragedy.
    — Wesley Stenzel, Entertainment Weekly, 21 Aug. 2026
  • Farnaby’s character, a thickly-accented and mostly-incomprehensible farmer, was, of course, called Barry.
    — Alex Ritman, Variety, 7 Aug. 2026
Definition of incomprehensible
Adjective
  • While his batting order remains unchanged, the team has made an unusual move, relocating Guerrero's locker to a new spot.
    — Peter Chawaga, Forbes.com, 30 Aug. 2026
  • Land exchanges are common elsewhere in the federal government, but exchanging National Park Service land for private development access is unusual, NOTUS reported, citing a former park service official.
    — Annie Palmer, CNBC, 29 Aug. 2026
Definition of unusual
Adjective
  • There’s also a brief and inexplicable detour to Murray Hill and a Williamsburg-y Bushwick loft to remind us of simpler times.
    — Nora DeLigter, Curbed, 28 Aug. 2026
  • Then again, so is this inexplicable two-and-a-half-year stretch of low-risk, juiceless attacking hockey that Pettersson has just endured.
    — Thomas Drance, New York Times, 26 Aug. 2026
Definition of inexplicable
Adjective
  • But the question remained unsolved for polygons with irrational angles.
    — Sam Macdonald, Scientific American, 14 Aug. 2026
  • As a result, the argument goes, today's spending is irrational because the hardware would need to be replaced too frequently to generate an attractive return on investment, known as ROI.
    — , CNBC, 12 Aug. 2026
Definition of irrational
Adjective
  • On behalf of myself, our staff, and the Board of Directors, we are entirely devastated by this unfathomable loss to Country Music and the entire world.
    — Steven J. Horowitz, Variety, 25 Aug. 2026
  • Building a racetrack in the middle of a city comes with an unfathomable number of logistical challenges.
    — Adam Kilgore, New York Times, 20 Aug. 2026
Definition of unfathomable
Adjective
  • Some are quieter this year, some are almost ridiculous, but all of them share a strange sense of purpose.
    — Jim Dobson, Forbes.com, 29 Aug. 2026
  • His attempt to discover what he is supposed to be doing propels him through a succession of increasingly strange encounters, as his search for purpose becomes entangled with his desire for love, friendship and some kind of place in the world.
    — Davide Abbatescianni, Variety, 28 Aug. 2026
Definition of strange
Adjective
  • Incomplete, corrupted, untimely, or unintelligible Submissions or Submission Forms will be disqualified.
    — August 16, NPR, 16 Aug. 2026
  • When the surveillance footage resumes about an hour later, a man can be heard shouting, but the words are unintelligible, and a vehicle horn sounds.
    — Kansas City Star, Kansas City Star, 10 Aug. 2026
Definition of unintelligible

Browse Nearby Words

kaffeeklatsches
Kafkaesque
kahuna
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Cite this Entry

“Kafkaesque.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/Kafkaesque. Accessed 1 Sep. 2026.

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