INEFFABLE - "incapable of being expressed in words; unspeakable; not to be uttered; taboo"

By MsW

The term "ineffable" refers to something that is beyond expression in words or indescribable because of its extraordinary or overwhelming nature. It denotes something that is too great, beautiful, or profound to be expressed adequately. The word comes from the Latin word "ineffabilis," which means "that cannot be expressed."

Sample sentences:

  • The beauty of the sunset was truly ineffable, leaving everyone speechless.

  • In his poetry, he tried to capture the ineffable emotions that words struggled to convey.

  • The feeling of awe she experienced in the presence of the ancient ruins was ineffable.

  • The music evoked an ineffable sense of nostalgia, transporting listeners to another time.

  • Some moments in life are so ineffable that they defy explanation and can only be felt.

Ineffable describes experiences or qualities that transcend language or expression due to their extraordinary or profound nature.


Word of the Day for Sunday, July 12, 2009

ineffable \in-EF-uh-buhl\, adjective:

1. Incapable of being expressed in words; unspeakable; unutterable; indescribable.
2. Not to be uttered; taboo.

. . .the tension inherent in human language when it attempts to relate the ineffable, see the invisible, understand the incomprehensible.
-- Jeffrey Burton Russell, A History of Heaven
Pope John Paul II notes that people are drawn to religion to answer the really big questions--for example, "What is the ultimate ineffable mystery which is the origin and destiny of our existence?"
-- William A. Sherden, The Fortune Sellers
One cannot blame them very much; explaining the ineffable is difficult.
-- Edward O. Wilson, "The Biological Basis of Morality", The Atlantic, April 1998

Ineffable is from Latin ineffabilis, from in-, "not" + effabilis, "utterable," from effari, "to utter," from ex-, "out" + fari, "to speak."



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