Definition of illegiblenext
as in unreadable
incapable of being read or deciphered illegible signatures on the petition will be disregarded

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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 illegible Past albums like Lyfë and 2093 were best experienced as hourslong excursions into illegible rage-rap experiences that washed over the listener, with Yeat’s voice muttering his harmonies amid glitchy laptop bangers. Mosi Reeves, Rolling Stone, 31 Mar. 2026 An illegible city produces anxiety, alienation and disorientation. Yunus Emre Tozal, Chicago Tribune, 18 Mar. 2026 Managers flagged signs as being worn and illegible. Madison Dapcevich, Outside, 11 Mar. 2026 But a prelinguistic intuition also simmers, for example, in a set of illegible, calligraphic drawings that suggest something just preceding the nascence of writing. Brian Seibert, New Yorker, 6 Feb. 2026 See All Example Sentences for illegible
Recent Examples of Synonyms for illegible
Adjective
  • Vault contents remain unreadable until the user enters the master password, which acts as a decryption key.
    Ashley Belanger, ArsTechnica, 4 June 2026
  • Encryption converts your data into unreadable code when it's being transmitted or stored.
    Rebecca Safier, USA Today, 4 June 2026
Adjective
  • My family tree was obscure, its branches hidden.
    Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 10 June 2026
  • City authorities have cited the obscure commission’s denial as reason for not moving forward even though the City Council voted in favor of the project.
    Andrew Khouri, Los Angeles Times, 9 June 2026
Adjective
  • In the calls obtained by PEOPLE on Thursday, the 20 year old can be heard switching into a fast-paced, virtually indecipherable code language while speaking with her mother, Natalie.
    Ryan Coleman, Entertainment Weekly, 21 May 2026
  • The final submission—a six-line poem from Akil—was cryptic, nearly indecipherable.
    Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 11 May 2026
Adjective
  • If the aurora is faint, a smartphone camera can often reveal colors and structures that are difficult to see with the naked eye, during weaker displays.
    Daisy Dobrijevic, Space.com, 8 June 2026
  • All there is to Lyra is Vega and a small parallelogram of fainter stars to the lower right.
    Mike Lynch, Twin Cities, 7 June 2026
Adjective
  • Georgia relies on machines that count ballots by reading QR codes that are undecipherable to humans.
    Caleb Groves, AJC.com, 29 Apr. 2026
  • The spirit and the symbolism were, at times, undecipherable.
    The Know, Denver Post, 8 Feb. 2026
Adjective
  • Since the study is observational, whether the gut microbiome findings were causing bowel issues or whether abnormal bowel function changed the gut microbiome is unclear, Preidis said.
    Kristen Rogers, CNN Money, 8 June 2026
  • For most of these crashes, the database is also unclear on whether the drivers violated traffic laws.
    Willoughby Mariano, ProPublica, 8 June 2026

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Cite this Entry

“Illegible.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/illegible. Accessed 11 Jun. 2026.

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