indecipherable

[ in-di-sahy-fer-uh-buhl ]

adjective

1. not decipherable; illegible.
2. not understandable; incomprehensible.

indecipherable

/ -frəbəl; ˌɪndɪˈsaɪfərəbəl /

adjective

1. not decipherable; illegible

Derived Forms

• ˌindeˈcipherably, adverb
• ˌindeˌcipheraˈbility, noun

Other Words From

• inde·cipher·a·bili·ty inde·cipher·a·ble·ness noun
• inde·cipher·a·bly adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of indecipherable¹

First recorded in 1795–1805; in- ³ + decipherable ( def )

Example Sentences

The defining complaint about the sacked Dutchman was that after two-and-a-bit seasons the football was still formless and the tactical direction indecipherable.

From BBC

You can do that through cheap tricks, or you can see that, despite the importance of place and the deep meaning rural people have in particular, their concerns, anxieties, and hopes are not indecipherable.

From Salon

Tuesday night, he seemed to scramble his words to an indecipherable point while speaking to Fox News about pro-Palestinian campus demonstrations.

From Salon

Fox News aired several minutes of blurry footage of Mr. Trump meeting with a Border Patrol agent in Eagle Pass, Texas, though the audio was often indecipherable.

From New York Times

With Can, his enigmatic, sometimes indecipherable utterances wove through free-flowing grooves.

From New York Times

Related Words

• cryptic
• illegible