1
as in hopeless
not capable of being cured or reformed
unfortunately, he was destined to live out his days as an irrecoverable alcoholic
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in irreversible
not capable of being repaired, regained, or undone
one computer file proved to be irrecoverable after the crash
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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Recent Examples of irrecoverable
An irrecoverable loss of the entirety of our personal data.
—
Shannon Bond, NPR, 11 Mar. 2026
Broadly speaking, this is probably not irrecoverable damage to the ecosystem.
—Shaun McKinnon, AZCentral.com, 5 Jan. 2026
Aviation experts have said a preliminary report from India's Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) raised questions over whether one of the pilots of Air India flight 171 cut off fuel to the Boeing 787's engines seconds after takeoff, leading to an irrecoverable situation.
—Dan Catchpole, USA Today, 18 July 2025
Aviation experts have said a preliminary report from India’s Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) raised questions over whether one of the pilots of Air India flight 171 cut off fuel to the Boeing 787’s engines seconds after takeoff, leading to an irrecoverable situation.
—Reuters, CNN Money, 16 July 2025
Crestfallen fans have begun demanding refunds for hundreds of dollars in ticket purchases to defray irrecoverable travel and lodging costs.
—Jia H. Jung, Mercury News, 11 July 2025
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
Shannon Bond, NPR, 11 Mar. 2026
Broadly speaking, this is probably not irrecoverable damage to the ecosystem.
—Shaun McKinnon, AZCentral.com, 5 Jan. 2026
Aviation experts have said a preliminary report from India's Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) raised questions over whether one of the pilots of Air India flight 171 cut off fuel to the Boeing 787's engines seconds after takeoff, leading to an irrecoverable situation.
—Dan Catchpole, USA Today, 18 July 2025
Aviation experts have said a preliminary report from India’s Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) raised questions over whether one of the pilots of Air India flight 171 cut off fuel to the Boeing 787’s engines seconds after takeoff, leading to an irrecoverable situation.
—Reuters, CNN Money, 16 July 2025
Crestfallen fans have begun demanding refunds for hundreds of dollars in ticket purchases to defray irrecoverable travel and lodging costs.
—Jia H. Jung, Mercury News, 11 July 2025
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
Recent Examples of Synonyms for irrecoverable
Adjective
-
What was once a hopeless 11-12 team is now a surging 17-13 squad with real designs on sneaking into the NCAA Tournament.—
Jim Root,
New York Times,
6 Mar. 2026
-
In a legal career that spanned more than four decades, Rosenbaum took on some of South Florida’s toughest, most hopeless cases.—
Rafael Olmeda,
Sun Sentinel,
5 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
Climate tipping points, such as when the melting of West Antarctica or of Greenland’s mile-deep ice sheet becomes irreversible, will have wide-ranging, catastrophic consequences.—
Voice of the People,
New York Daily News,
9 Mar. 2026
-
By the time the wasp larvae spin their white rice-like cocoons, the caterpillar has suffered irreversible damage and can no longer damage your tomato crop.—
Barbara Gillette,
The Spruce,
9 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
This dreamscape of the island, like that of the jungle, illuminates in children’s literature a sense of utopia and longing about childhood as a not-quite-place, situated in an irretrievable past-yet-future, while at the same time rooted in an anti-utopian logic of adulthood.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
17 Nov. 2025
-
Alcaraz broke the Italian twice, winning the set with an incredible backhand flick from what looked like an irretrievable position and cupping his ear.—
Tim Ellis,
Forbes.com,
13 July 2025
Adjective
-
One gets the impression that Jordan has never been invited to join in locker-room talk in his life and that this has done irreparable damage to his psyche.—
Kathleen Walsh,
Vulture,
12 Mar. 2026
-
Because making contact at this point runs the risk of scratching the sensor and doing irreparable damage.—
Jacob Little,
Space.com,
12 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
This leads to what may be a unrecoverable confession from Emma that adds tension to the lead-up to their nuptials.—
Dessi Gomez,
Deadline,
3 Feb. 2026
-
If the government stays closed, the blame will fall on those fighting to protect an agency operating at an unrecoverable trust deficit, pushing out transparent propaganda that Republican politicians are struggling to coherently defend.—
Logan McMillen,
Washington Post,
27 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
Arcellx is developing a new class of immunotherapies for patients with cancer and other incurable diseases.—
Bloomberg,
Mercury News,
23 Feb. 2026
-
Arcellx focuses on immunotherapies for patients with cancer and others with incurable diseases.—
Scott Schnipper,
CNBC,
23 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Irrecoverable.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/irrecoverable. Accessed 18 Mar. 2026.
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