as in mysteriousness
the quality or state of being impossible to know, understand, or explain
the impenetrability of her prose is apparently the basis of her appeal to literary snobs
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Recent Examples of impenetrability
As a result, the impenetrability of EU bureaucracies will continue to limit the United States’ ability to restructure transatlantic economic relations.
—
Jennifer Kavanagh, Foreign Affairs, 30 Sep. 2025
For certain travelers, though, especially those who gravitate toward conflict zones and geopolitical oddities, Turkmenistan’s impenetrability has given it an alluring mystique.
—Joe Yogerst, CNN Money, 31 July 2025
Curiously, this rediscovered impenetrability has come with Nick Pope, the undisputed No 1 goalkeeper, injured.
—Chris Waugh, The Athletic, 1 Jan. 2025
Kim Gordon, The Collective A 71-year-old noise-rocker reciting spoken word over drum machines might scan as avant-garde impenetrability.
—Spencer Kornhaber, The Atlantic, 17 Dec. 2024
See All Example Sentences for impenetrability
Jennifer Kavanagh, Foreign Affairs, 30 Sep. 2025
For certain travelers, though, especially those who gravitate toward conflict zones and geopolitical oddities, Turkmenistan’s impenetrability has given it an alluring mystique.
—Joe Yogerst, CNN Money, 31 July 2025
Curiously, this rediscovered impenetrability has come with Nick Pope, the undisputed No 1 goalkeeper, injured.
—Chris Waugh, The Athletic, 1 Jan. 2025
Kim Gordon, The Collective A 71-year-old noise-rocker reciting spoken word over drum machines might scan as avant-garde impenetrability.
—Spencer Kornhaber, The Atlantic, 17 Dec. 2024
See All Example Sentences for impenetrability
Recent Examples of Synonyms for impenetrability
Noun
-
That intrigue and mysteriousness still rest in the canyon walls today.—
Madison Dapcevich,
Outside,
13 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
The power of its clarity or ambiguity.—
Katie Campione,
Deadline,
14 May 2026
-
Part of the concern has to do with the ethical ambiguities surrounding the project.—
Will Gottsegen,
The Atlantic,
13 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Impenetrability.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/impenetrability. Accessed 15 May. 2026.
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