unspeakable

[ uhn-spee-kuh-buhl ]

adjective

1. not speakable; that may not be spoken.
2. exceeding the power of speech; unutterable; inexpressible; indescribable.

   Synonyms: unimaginable, ineffable

3. inexpressibly bad or objectionable.

unspeakable

/ ʌnˈspiːkəbəl /

adjective

1. incapable of expression in words

   unspeakable ecstasy

2. indescribably bad or evil
3. not to be uttered

   unspeakable thoughts

Derived Forms

• unˈspeakably, adverb
• unˈspeakableness, noun

Other Words From

• un·speaka·ble·ness noun
• un·speaka·bly adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of unspeakable¹

1350–1400; Middle English unspekeabill. See un- ¹, speak ( def ), -able ( def )

Example Sentences

Baltimore County Police said in a statement Thursday night that they were grieving over the “unspeakable deaths” after discovering the kids’ bodies when they pulled 33-year-old Nicole Johnson over in a traffic stop late Wednesday.

From The Daily Beast

When an unspeakable evil is unleashed upon the world, civilization descends into chaos, and war blankets the globe.

From Ars Technica

The risks were appalling and the hardships unspeakable, but no government official would ever again tell you what to do.

From The Daily Beast

Those two days, May 31 and June 1 of 1921, were unspeakable atrocities where unspeakable violence happened.

From Essence.com

This unspeakable and avoidable tragedy is just one piece of the puzzle.

From Washington Blade

Were you defining yourself as a fiction writer then, or did you already envision writing essays like the ones in The Unspeakable?

From The Daily Beast

But unlike other recent books in its genre, Unspeakable Things is markedly uninterested in converting its readers.

From The Daily Beast

Syria—not usually the unspeakable disaster it is now, but never good.

From The Daily Beast

Reports describe a gruesome scene of “almost unspeakable horror” with “bodies everywhere, organs splayed out.”

From The Daily Beast

While current protests focus on government corruption, the unspeakable succession to the throne overshadows all.

From The Daily Beast

But her sympathy, and her confident belief that Alessandro might yet be found, gave unspeakable cheer to Felipe.

From Project Gutenberg

He has been at once the author and the audience of the pitiful, unspeakable, long-drawn and far-stretched tragedy of earthly life.

From Project Gutenberg

He didn't know there was a grave, but something weighed him down with unspeakable remorse.

From Project Gutenberg

No good; he must humiliate himself again before those unspeakable aliens.

From Project Gutenberg

It is very little more trouble, and certainly no more expense; and the advantages in point of comfort are unspeakable.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• abominable
• appalling
• atrocious
• awful
• dreadful
• heinous
• horrible
• inconceivable
• indescribable
• ineffable
• inhuman
• monstrous
• odious
• shocking
• unbelievable
• unimaginable