1
as in surreal
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2
as in incomprehensible
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of Kafkaesque
Those who value and respect America but couldn’t find their way through the Kafkaesque immigration system deserve a chance to rectify their situation.
—
Agustina Vergara Cid, Oc Register, 10 Aug. 2025
In a Kafkaesque twist, Trump’s chart assigns Eswatini the lowest possible (10 percent) reciprocal tariff, despite the fact the nation applies the same external tariffs as Lesotho.
—Robert Goulder, Forbes.com, 28 July 2025
To be fair, dealing with any healthcare bureaucracy in America is sure to be frustrating and annoying, and will most likely turn into a Kafkaesque nightmare.
—Emily Cegielski, Flow Space, 27 June 2025
Obtaining a permit to fly a drone in Nepal as a foreigner was a somewhat Kafkaesque exercise in patience.
—Ben Ayers, Outside Online, 6 May 2025
These are intentional Kafkaesque problems that the Trump Administration is creating.
—Grace Byron, New Yorker, 29 Apr. 2025
No one wants to have their family vacation turned into some Kafkaesque nightmare at the hands of ICE agents emboldened by the country's general climate of incipient fascism.
—Matt Robison, MSNBC Newsweek, 16 Apr. 2025
That standard was used to suppress the speech of faculty, such as Northwestern professor Laura Kipnis, who in a Kafkaesque turn was the subject of a legal complaint by students under Title IX for writing an op-ed column criticizing the Obama view of Title IX.
—The Editors, National Review, 16 Apr. 2025
Agustina Vergara Cid, Oc Register, 10 Aug. 2025
In a Kafkaesque twist, Trump’s chart assigns Eswatini the lowest possible (10 percent) reciprocal tariff, despite the fact the nation applies the same external tariffs as Lesotho.
—Robert Goulder, Forbes.com, 28 July 2025
To be fair, dealing with any healthcare bureaucracy in America is sure to be frustrating and annoying, and will most likely turn into a Kafkaesque nightmare.
—Emily Cegielski, Flow Space, 27 June 2025
Obtaining a permit to fly a drone in Nepal as a foreigner was a somewhat Kafkaesque exercise in patience.
—Ben Ayers, Outside Online, 6 May 2025
These are intentional Kafkaesque problems that the Trump Administration is creating.
—Grace Byron, New Yorker, 29 Apr. 2025
No one wants to have their family vacation turned into some Kafkaesque nightmare at the hands of ICE agents emboldened by the country's general climate of incipient fascism.
—Matt Robison, MSNBC Newsweek, 16 Apr. 2025
That standard was used to suppress the speech of faculty, such as Northwestern professor Laura Kipnis, who in a Kafkaesque turn was the subject of a legal complaint by students under Title IX for writing an op-ed column criticizing the Obama view of Title IX.
—The Editors, National Review, 16 Apr. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for Kafkaesque
Adjective
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Floating quietly in the water while these massive creatures moved through the ocean around us felt surreal, the kind of travel moment that lodges permanently in memory.—
Susmita Baral,
Travel + Leisure,
14 Apr. 2026
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In a surreal intertextual turn, Bratu’s Angela, played by Dorina Lazăr, appears in Jude’s contemporary Bucharest.—
Rebecca Mead,
New Yorker,
13 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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The majesty of the natural world and the incomprehensible vastness of space are almost infinitely rearrangeable variables for documentarians.—
David Faris,
TheWeek,
13 Apr. 2026
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Arthur is a creepy dude, a generic-looking cellphone store employee with an incomprehensible plan.—
Amy Nicholson,
Los Angeles Times,
9 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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They were both struck by the unusual culture in Steubenville.—
Emma Green,
New Yorker,
17 Apr. 2026
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Player news becomes national news, entire communities grind to a halt to watch games, and shops post unusual hours that suspiciously align with the match schedule.—
Tribune Content Agency,
Baltimore Sun,
16 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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Research suggests this sudden, inexplicable illness affects women more often than men.—
Lindsay Dodgson,
SELF,
2 Apr. 2026
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Adapted from Algernon Blackwood’s supernatural novella, The Man Whom the Trees Loved is a ghostly tale of the inexplicable horrors of nature.—
Matthew Carey,
Deadline,
31 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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Devereaux receives a hero’s welcome back home, but his irrational and violent behavior threatens his new livelihood, as does the knowledge of his cowardice held by Capt.—
Declan Gallagher,
Entertainment Weekly,
11 Apr. 2026
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With the automation of more health billing decisions, irrational results have become increasingly common.—
Elisabeth Rosenthal,
Miami Herald,
8 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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In recent years, extreme weather events have caused unfathomable economic damage, and those costs are passed on to homeowners, renters, and small businesses through higher rates for insurance.—
Scott Wiener,
Oc Register,
12 Apr. 2026
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One, Emergency in favor of twice, existed solely as an unfathomable phrase mentioned in a letter from Duchamp to his sister.—
Howard Halle,
ARTnews.com,
10 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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Still, scrolling through TMZ’s posts of congresspeople instills a strange rush of Schadenfreude.—
Paula Mejía,
New Yorker,
15 Apr. 2026
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This is one of the stranger ironies — liberal politicians, often skeptical of market forces, become true believers in rosy stock market projections that will render new commitments affordable.—
Daniel DiSalvo,
New York Daily News,
14 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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Instead, first-time director Fergus Campbell drops us directly into Cleo’s world — no parents, no rules and every authority figure is obscured, like the unintelligible adults in Peanuts cartoons.—
Jourdain Searles,
HollywoodReporter,
20 Mar. 2026
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Later audio intel from subsidiary figures is likewise frequently rendered unintelligible by distortion, staticky transmission, etc.—
Dennis Harvey,
Variety,
2 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Kafkaesque.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/Kafkaesque. Accessed 18 Apr. 2026.
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