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 irrecoverable Customs Duty, which is irrecoverable. Import VAT, which can be reclaimed, provided correct steps are taken. Robert Marchant, Forbes.com, 14 May 2025 The contents of the time capsule may become irrecoverable. Dhruv Khullar, New Yorker, 28 Apr. 2025 Half of it goes to the nearby Hardy River, in an attempt to revive ecosystems that were thought to be irrecoverable. Geraldine Castro, Wired News, 23 Apr. 2025 During the Kursk operation, the enemy has already lost over 38,000 soldiers in this single direction alone, with approximately 15,000 of them irrecoverable losses. Kevin Lynn, Newsweek, 7 Jan. 2025 This kind of situation occurs when irrecoverable past investments drive decisions, even when those costs are irrelevant to future outcomes. Shanna Apitz, Forbes, 19 Dec. 2024 During the Kursk operation, the enemy has already lost over 38,000 soldiers in this single direction alone, with approximately 15,000 of them irrecoverable losses. Kevin Lynn, Newsweek, 7 Jan. 2025 This kind of situation occurs when irrecoverable past investments drive decisions, even when those costs are irrelevant to future outcomes. Shanna Apitz, Forbes, 19 Dec. 2024 The damage done by Biden-Harris is not irrecoverable. Gary Franks, Hartford Courant, 1 Nov. 2024
Recent Examples of Synonyms for irrecoverable
Adjective
  • Those who are convinced they’re trapped stay helpless and hopeless.
    Amy Morin, CNBC, 12 June 2025
  • In a world where the powerful increasingly act with impunity, taking fictional villains to task makes sense, a form of Hollywood wish fulfillment for those who feel stuck or hopeless.
    Whitney Friedlander, Los Angeles Times, 11 June 2025
Adjective
  • The usual one that pops into people’s heads is that fire seems to be an irreversible invention.
    Lance Eliot, Forbes.com, 2 July 2025
  • Socotra needs to implement similar protections before damage becomes irreversible, Van Damme said.
    Shane Farrell, NBC news, 28 June 2025
Adjective
  • Choi seems to be exploring, if subtly, the limitless number of paths a person can take, the manifold consequences of choices that seem inconsequential, the ways interpersonal disputes can widen into irretrievable losses, the awkward intersections of agency and fate: If only this, if not for that.
    Book Marks June 5, Literary Hub, 5 June 2025
  • This prevents the irretrievable loss of expertise during transitions.
    Nick Hart, Forbes.com, 28 May 2025
Adjective
  • Immediate, irreparable harm When the government creates a policy that might violate the Constitution or federal law, affected people can sue in federal court to stop it.
    Cassandra Burke Robertson, The Conversation, 27 June 2025
  • Their outcomes are far from certain, and the cases might be decided only after irreparable damage has been done.
    Alex Reisner, The Atlantic, 25 June 2025
Adjective
  • That drop felt like a gut punch to many, especially with ongoing news coverage framing current events as ominous, permanent or unrecoverable.
    Steve Booren, Denver Post, 15 June 2025
  • Going down the wrong path may have consequences ranging from a minor mishap to an unrecoverable catastrophe.
    John Hall, Forbes.com, 13 June 2025
Adjective
  • In April, the actor told PEOPLE exclusively that he'd been diagnosed with the incurable disease.
    Hannah Sacks, People.com, 16 June 2025
  • The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has reinstated nearly 200 workers who screen coal miners for black lung, an incurable progressive disease caused by long-term exposure to coal dust, following a federal judge’s order Tuesday.
    Nathaniel Weixel, The Hill, 14 May 2025

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Irrecoverable.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/irrecoverable. Accessed 10 Jul. 2025.

More from Merriam-Webster on irrecoverable

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!