Standard Lemma guide

irreversible

adj · 4 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.

  • UK: /ˌɪr.ɪˈvɜː.sə.bəl/
  • Southern-England: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • US: /ˌɪr.ɪˈvɝ.sə.bəl/
  • CMU ARPABET: IH2 R IH0 V ER1 S AH0 B AH0 L Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

adj

Meaning 1

Incapable of being reversed or turned about or back; incapable of being made to run backwards.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: not-comparable

Examples

  • an irreversible engine

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

adj

Meaning 2

Incapable of being reversed, recalled, repealed, or annulled.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: not-comparable

Examples

  • an irreversible sentence or decree

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

adj

Meaning 3

Incapable of being reversed to the original state without consumption of free energy and increase of entropy.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: not-comparable

Topics: natural-sciences, physical-sciences, physics, thermodynamics

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

4

adjective

Meaning 4

incapable of being reversed

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • irreversible momentum toward revolution

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: reversible

History

Etymology

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *né Proto-Indo-European *n̥- Proto-Italic *n̥- Latin in- Latin ir- English ir- English reversible English irreversible From ir- + reversible.

Across languages

Translations

48 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Armenian: անշրջելի (anšrǰeli) — incapable of being reversed
  • Belarusian: неабарача́льны (njeabaračálʹny) — incapable of being reversed
  • Bulgarian: необратим (neobratim) — incapable of being reversed
  • Catalan: irreversible — incapable of being reversed
  • Chinese Mandarin: 不可逆 (bùkěnì) — incapable of being reversed
  • Czech: nevratný — incapable of being reversed
  • Dutch: onomkeerbaar — incapable of being reversed
  • Esperanto: nereversebla — incapable of being reversed
  • Estonian: pöördumatu — incapable of being reversed
  • Finnish: peruuttamaton — incapable of being reversed
  • French: irréversible — incapable of being reversed
  • Georgian: შეუქცევადი (šeukcevadi) — incapable of being reversed
  • Georgian: გამოუსწორებადი (gamousc̣orebadi) — incapable of being reversed
  • Georgian: არაუკუქცევადი (arauḳukcevadi) — incapable of being reversed
  • German: irreversibel — incapable of being reversed
  • German: unumkehrbar — incapable of being reversed
  • Greek: αδιάστρεπτος (adiástreptos) — incapable of being reversed
  • Greek: αμετάτρεπτος (ametátreptos) — incapable of being reversed
  • Hungarian: visszafordíthatatlan — incapable of being reversed
  • Irish: dochúlaithe — incapable of being reversed
  • Italian: irreversibile — incapable of being reversed
  • Japanese: 不可逆 (fukagyaku) — incapable of being reversed
  • Korean: 뒤집을 수 없는 (dwijibeul su eomneun) — incapable of being reversed
  • Manx: neuyantagh cur ergooyl — incapable of being reversed
  • Manx: neuyantagh dy chur er ash — incapable of being reversed
  • Norwegian Bokmål: irreversibel — incapable of being reversed
  • Norwegian Nynorsk: irreversibel — incapable of being reversed
  • Polish: nieodwracalny — incapable of being reversed
  • Portuguese: irreversível — incapable of being reversed
  • Romanian: ireversibil — incapable of being reversed
  • Russian: необрати́мый (neobratímyj) — incapable of being reversed
  • Spanish: irreversible — incapable of being reversed
  • Swedish: oåterkallelig — incapable of being reversed
  • Swedish: irreversibel — incapable of being reversed
  • Tagalog: ditumbalikin — incapable of being reversed
  • Ukrainian: незворотний (nezvorotnyj) — incapable of being reversed
  • Ukrainian: необоротни́й (neoborotnýj) — incapable of being reversed
  • Welsh: anghildroadwy — incapable of being reversed
  • Bulgarian: неотменим (neotmenim) — incapable of being reversed, recalled, repealed, or annulled
  • Chinese Mandarin: 不可逆轉的 /不可逆转的 (bùkě nìzhuǎn de) — incapable of being reversed, recalled, repealed, or annulled
  • Chinese Mandarin: 無可挽回的 /无可挽回的 (wúkě wǎnhuí de) — incapable of being reversed, recalled, repealed, or annulled
  • Esperanto: nereversebla — incapable of being reversed, recalled, repealed, or annulled
  • Korean: 돌이킬 수 없는 (dorikil su eomneun) — incapable of being reversed, recalled, repealed, or annulled
  • Norwegian Bokmål: irreversibel — incapable of being reversed, recalled, repealed, or annulled
  • Norwegian Nynorsk: irreversibel — incapable of being reversed, recalled, repealed, or annulled
  • Polish: nieodwołalny — incapable of being reversed, recalled, repealed, or annulled
  • Portuguese: irreversível — incapable of being reversed, recalled, repealed, or annulled
  • Tagalog: ditumbalikin — incapable of being reversed, recalled, repealed, or annulled
Real reading context

irreversible in complete knowledge articles