incredulous
Americanadjective
-
not credulous; disinclined or indisposed to believe; skeptical
-
indicating or showing unbelief.
an incredulous smile.
adjective
Related Words
See doubtful.
Other Word Forms
- incredulously adverb
- incredulousness noun
Etymology
Origin of incredulous
From the Latin word incrēdulus, dating back to 1525–35; in- 3, credulous
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
That is how a teenager got a three-time American League MVP to bounce into a double play in front of 30,000 incredulous fans.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 10, 2026
Mitchell's family had been led to believe he had been cremated in a private ceremony and were "incredulous" when police told them his body was still at the funeral home, the jury was told.
From BBC • Feb. 19, 2026
Curious onlookers filmed the scene on their smartphones, many still incredulous at the speed and magnitude of the day's events.
From Barron's • Jan. 4, 2026
Paikin remembered incredulous customers asking the waitstaff if they could really just help themselves, and not quite believing it when they heard, “Yes, you can get whatever you want.”
From Slate • Nov. 13, 2025
Malcolm sounded incredulous, and he felt it too: Who on earth would want to hurt the nuns, or break their windows?
From "The Book of Dust: La Belle Sauvage" by Philip Pullman
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
