imponderable

American  

[im-pon-der-uh-buhl] / ɪmˈpɒn dər ə bəl /

adjective

1. not ponderable; that cannot be precisely determined, measured, or evaluated.

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noun

1. an imponderable thing, force, agency, etc.

imponderable British  

/ ɪmˈpɒndərəbəl, -drəbəl /

adjective

1. unable to be weighed or assessed

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noun

1. something difficult or impossible to assess

Other Word Forms

• imponderability noun
• imponderableness noun
• imponderably adverb

Etymology

Origin of imponderable

From the Medieval Latin word imponderābilis, dating back to 1785–95. See im- ², ponderable

Explanation

Imponderable describes a situation that isn't able to be completely explained. "What is the meaning of life?" is one of those imponderable questions that defies humans' ability for understanding If something is ponderable, it is capable of being assessed or weighed; stick im- in front and you get the opposite effect. Use imponderable to describe something that is elusive and vague, perhaps even evasive. When your question doesn't have a definitive answer, you are in imponderable territory: "Life has many imponderable questions, such as why you park in a driveway and drive on parkway."

Example Sentences

Mr Smith was more reluctant to consider what he called an "imponderable" question.

From BBC • Jan. 19, 2023

Unlike so many imponderable questions that surround death, these may indeed have answers.

From Washington Post • Nov. 3, 2021

We end up debating the appropriate words perhaps because debating the imponderable questions about what is a “rational” measure of concern for the underlying subjects is too much.

From Slate • Dec. 10, 2020

Help is such an amorphous concept, especially in a game awash in so many imponderable variables that its practitioners have sworn to the efficacy of soft metal bracelets and magnetic necklaces.

From Golf Digest • Feb. 2, 2020

I hesitated, weighing and balancing the imponderable realities.

From "Black Boy" by Richard Wright