Standard Lemma guide

indescribable

adj · 3 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • /ɪndɪˈskɹaɪbəbl̩/
  • US: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • CMU ARPABET: IH2 N D IH0 S K R AY1 B AH0 B AH0 L Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

adj

Meaning 1

Impossible (or very difficult) to describe.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Examples

  • He proved it with indescribable mathematics.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

adj

Meaning 2

Exceeding all description.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Examples

  • Our hotel had an indescribable view of the Bay of Naples.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

adjective satellite

Meaning 3

defying expression or description

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • indefinable yearnings
  • indescribable beauty
  • ineffable ecstasy
  • inexpressible anguish
  • unspeakable happiness
  • unutterable contempt
  • a thing of untellable splendor

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: indefinable, ineffable, unspeakable, untellable, unutterable

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

From in- + describe + -able.

Across languages

Translations

55 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Antigua and Barbuda Creole English: wapsoustieshis — impossible, or very difficult to describe
  • Armenian: աննկարագրելի (annkaragreli) — impossible, or very difficult to describe
  • Belarusian: неапіса́льны (njeapisálʹny) — impossible, or very difficult to describe
  • Belarusian: невыка́зны (njevykázny) — impossible, or very difficult to describe
  • Bulgarian: неописуем (neopisuem) — impossible, or very difficult to describe
  • Catalan: indescriptible — impossible, or very difficult to describe
  • Chinese Mandarin: 無法形容 /无法形容 (wúfǎ xíngróng) — impossible, or very difficult to describe
  • Chinese Mandarin: 不可名狀 /不可名状 (bùkěmíngzhuàng) — impossible, or very difficult to describe
  • Czech: nepopsatelný — impossible, or very difficult to describe
  • Dutch: onbeschrijfelijk — impossible, or very difficult to describe
  • Esperanto: nepriskribebla — impossible, or very difficult to describe
  • Finnish: sanoin kuvaamaton — impossible, or very difficult to describe
  • Finnish: kuvaamaton — impossible, or very difficult to describe
  • French: indescriptible — impossible, or very difficult to describe
  • Galician: indescritíbel — impossible, or very difficult to describe
  • German: unbeschreiblich — impossible, or very difficult to describe
  • Gothic: 𐌿𐌽𐌿𐍃𐍃𐍀𐌹𐌻𐌻𐍉𐌸𐍃 (unusspillōþs) — impossible, or very difficult to describe
  • Greek: ανεκδιήγητος (anekdiígitos) — impossible, or very difficult to describe
  • Greek: απερίγραπτος (aperígraptos) — impossible, or very difficult to describe
  • Greek: αχαρακτήριστος (acharaktíristos) — impossible, or very difficult to describe
  • Greek: αδιήγητος (adiígitos) — impossible, or very difficult to describe
  • Ancient Greek: ἀνεκδιήγητος (anekdiḗgētos) — impossible, or very difficult to describe
  • Japanese: 言い表わせない (iiarawasenai) — impossible, or very difficult to describe
  • Latin: inēnarrābilis — impossible, or very difficult to describe
  • Manx: neufocklagh — impossible, or very difficult to describe
  • Norwegian Bokmål: ubeskrivelig — impossible, or very difficult to describe
  • Norwegian Nynorsk: ubeskriveleg — impossible, or very difficult to describe
  • Polish: nieopisany — impossible, or very difficult to describe
  • Portuguese: indescritível — impossible, or very difficult to describe
  • Romanian: indescriptibil — impossible, or very difficult to describe
  • Romanian: inexprimabil — impossible, or very difficult to describe
  • Romanian: de nedescris — impossible, or very difficult to describe
  • Russian: неопису́емый (neopisújemyj) — impossible, or very difficult to describe
  • Russian: несказа́нный (neskazánnyj) — impossible, or very difficult to describe
  • Russian: невырази́мый (nevyrazímyj) — impossible, or very difficult to describe
  • Slovak: neopísateľný — impossible, or very difficult to describe
  • Spanish: indescriptible — impossible, or very difficult to describe
  • Swedish: obeskrivlig — impossible, or very difficult to describe
  • Turkish: tarifsiz — impossible, or very difficult to describe
  • Turkish: tarif edilemez — impossible, or very difficult to describe
  • Ukrainian: неопи́саний (neopýsanyj) — impossible, or very difficult to describe
  • Ukrainian: невимо́вний (nevymóvnyj) — impossible, or very difficult to describe
  • Ukrainian: несказа́нний (neskazánnyj) — impossible, or very difficult to describe
  • Catalan: indescriptible — exceeding all description
  • Czech: nepopsatelný — exceeding all description
  • Dutch: onbeschrijfelijk — exceeding all description
  • Finnish: sanoin kuvaamaton — exceeding all description
  • Finnish: kuvaamaton — exceeding all description
  • French: indescriptible — exceeding all description
  • Galician: indescritíbel — exceeding all description
  • German: unbeschreiblich — exceeding all description
  • Polish: nieopisywalny — exceeding all description
  • Portuguese: indescritível — exceeding all description
  • Romanian: indescriptibil — exceeding all description
  • Russian: неопису́емый (neopisújemyj) — exceeding all description