as in mute
unable to speak
the sudden rumblings of an earthquake rendered people inarticulate with fear
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Recent Examples of inarticulate
The root conveys a sense of emitting a deep, inarticulate sound of distress.
—
Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 5 Aug. 2025
As pompous actor Garry, Nehal Joshi aces the tough task of making his character’s halting, inarticulate speech sound authentic.
—Pam Kragen, San Diego Union-Tribune, 12 July 2025
The accents of remorse are elliptical, inarticulate.
—Sarah Beckwith, New Yorker, 26 May 2025
The Bidens may have planned the cancer announcement as a smokescreen to take the focus off the coverup of his mental decline illustrated by memory lapses, stumbles and inarticulate speech patterns heard on the audio.
—Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 24 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for inarticulate
Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 5 Aug. 2025
As pompous actor Garry, Nehal Joshi aces the tough task of making his character’s halting, inarticulate speech sound authentic.
—Pam Kragen, San Diego Union-Tribune, 12 July 2025
The accents of remorse are elliptical, inarticulate.
—Sarah Beckwith, New Yorker, 26 May 2025
The Bidens may have planned the cancer announcement as a smokescreen to take the focus off the coverup of his mental decline illustrated by memory lapses, stumbles and inarticulate speech patterns heard on the audio.
—Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 24 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for inarticulate
Recent Examples of Synonyms for inarticulate
Adjective
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Complicating matters is the fact that Maddie is deaf and mute, forcing her to utilize her other senses to stop the killer from claiming her as his next victim.—
Kevin Jacobsen,
Entertainment Weekly,
31 Jan. 2026
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For this new work, Andrews has forged Sophocles’ Electra with Ingmar Bergman’s 1966 gripping classic, Persona, a film that starred Liv Ullmann and Bibi Andersson playing, respectively, a famous theatre actress, inexplicably struck mute, who is cared for by a young nurse.—
Baz Bamigboye,
Deadline,
26 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
In helicopter video taken by Air Maui Helicopter Tours in Lahaina and posted online the people aboard are largely speechless.—
Phil Helsel,
NBC News,
10 Aug. 2023
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Because his work, as is often the case, leaves us almost speechless.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
10 Jan. 2023
Cite this Entry
“Inarticulate.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/inarticulate. Accessed 11 Feb. 2026.
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