1
as in surreal
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in incomprehensible
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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
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
In a particularly Kafkaesque explanation for why some of the Venezuelan migrants who have no criminal records were targeted for arrest and deportation, government lawyers argued in court that their lack of a criminal record is in itself cause for concern.
—Nisha Whitehead, Oc Register, 28 Mar. 2025
But Ned was declared dead last month by the Social Security Administration, which led him and his wife on a Kafkaesque quest to prove there’s life left in this salty old Seattle seadog yet.
—Matthew J. Friedman, CNN, 21 Mar. 2025
This Kafkaesque saga began late Friday, when President Donald Trump quietly signed an order availing himself of a wartime authority to carry out the mass deportations.
—Philip Elliott, TIME, 17 Mar. 2025
This defiant and entertaining work playfully uses headshots and avatars to visualize clandestine audio recordings documenting years of Kafkaesque impositions, threats, and vital dissident art.
—Samantha Bergeson, IndieWire, 10 Feb. 2025
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
In a particularly Kafkaesque explanation for why some of the Venezuelan migrants who have no criminal records were targeted for arrest and deportation, government lawyers argued in court that their lack of a criminal record is in itself cause for concern.
—Nisha Whitehead, Oc Register, 28 Mar. 2025
But Ned was declared dead last month by the Social Security Administration, which led him and his wife on a Kafkaesque quest to prove there’s life left in this salty old Seattle seadog yet.
—Matthew J. Friedman, CNN, 21 Mar. 2025
This Kafkaesque saga began late Friday, when President Donald Trump quietly signed an order availing himself of a wartime authority to carry out the mass deportations.
—Philip Elliott, TIME, 17 Mar. 2025
This defiant and entertaining work playfully uses headshots and avatars to visualize clandestine audio recordings documenting years of Kafkaesque impositions, threats, and vital dissident art.
—Samantha Bergeson, IndieWire, 10 Feb. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for Kafkaesque
Adjective
-
By Robert Kagan The current debate over bombing Iran is surreal.—
Robert Kagan,
The Atlantic,
21 June 2025
-
Each puzzle piece features a surreal image, difficult to decipher.—
Joan MacDonald,
Forbes.com,
17 June 2025
Adjective
-
In a brittle, anxious, nonlinear, incomprehensible (BANI) world where change is the only constant, the leadership traits that once earned respect—tenacity, decisiveness and stoicism—are no longer enough.—
Arthi Rabikrisson,
Forbes.com,
18 June 2025
-
Each episode represents an hour in the staff’s frenetic, 15-hour day that culminates with a mass casualty shooting and an incomprehensible case of the measles involving an unvaccinated child.—
Lynette Rice,
Deadline,
12 June 2025
Adjective
-
Three corners of the brownie remained in tact, but the missing chunk from the center has left the brownie looking pretty unusual, sparking plenty of amused comments from viewers.—
Melissa Fleur Afshar,
MSNBC Newsweek,
20 June 2025
-
That can mean anything from unusual cuts to stones acquired for imperfection rather than perfection such as the 27.83-carat Paraíba tourmaline with an interesting pattern of inclusions on the Chain Drop necklace.—
Paige Reddinger,
Robb Report,
20 June 2025
Adjective
-
Boca una locura; a mad, inexplicable, head’s-gone kind of thing.—
James Horncastle,
New York Times,
16 June 2025
-
Trump entered negotiations to end the war in Ukraine by presenting Putin with a bouquet of inexplicable concessions.—
Andrew Ryvkin,
The Atlantic,
16 June 2025
Adjective
-
It’s been reopened in chunks, thanks to the unrelenting optimism and irrational persistence of a corps of downtown residents led by Rodriguez and Rosa Chang.—
Justin Davidson,
Curbed,
16 June 2025
-
On the other hand, especially given that the vote was still restricted to only a small minority of propertied men, the rise of party politics itself sharpened the age-old mistrust of popular judgment as irrational and easily swayed—especially by lies.—
Fara Dabhoiwala,
Harpers Magazine,
4 June 2025
Adjective
-
McNeeley was about 4, and playing against first graders, 6- and 7-year olds, which is almost unfathomable.—
Dom Amore,
Hartford Courant,
25 June 2025
-
In a turn that once seemed unfathomable, Spanish-language music has become a mainstay in the top 10 of the U.S. Billboard 200 and Hot 100 charts, and in 2024 Latin music in the U.S. reached a record-breaking $1.4 billion in revenue.—
Ernesto Lechner,
Los Angeles Times,
24 June 2025
Adjective
-
Read more: How to Manage Your Climate Guilt Meanwhile, the same system has given rise to what can only be described as illogical trade—the global exchange of identical products, where countries import and export the same foods, often across vast distances.—
Nathalie Kelley,
Time,
17 June 2025
-
That nobody has to this point is illogical, particularly in light of the fees being committed to transfers in the European market.—
Phil Hay,
New York Times,
17 June 2025
Adjective
-
As satire, Next to Heaven is unintelligible, as though someone is universalizing their own hangups and then skewering them for clout.—
Book Marks
June 20,
Literary Hub,
20 June 2025
-
Filled with uncanny creatures and unintelligible language, the book's inspiration came, Serafini muses, either from aliens, or his cat.—
David Morgan,
CBS News,
30 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Kafkaesque.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/Kafkaesque. Accessed 1 Jul. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share