incomprehensible

adjective

in·​com·​pre·​hen·​si·​ble (ˌ)in-ˌkäm-pri-ˈhen(t)-sə-bəl 

1

: impossible to comprehend : unintelligible

incomprehensible instructions

2

archaic : having or subject to no limits

incomprehensibility

(ˌ)in-ˌkäm-pri-ˌhen(t)-sə-ˈbi-lə-tē 

noun

incomprehensibleness noun

incomprehensibly

(ˌ)in-ˌkäm-pri-ˈhen(t)-sə-blē 

adverb

Synonyms

• impenetrable
• unfathomable
• ungraspable
• unintelligible

Examples of incomprehensible in a Sentence

I found his behavior utterly incomprehensible.

It's incomprehensible to me that he could have acted that way.

Recent Examples on the Web

This is something incomprehensible to any human being. —Caitlin McFall, Fox News, 5 Feb. 2025

The loss of Oakland’s MLB team and then the city’s greatest MLB son in the same year is an almost incomprehensible loss for fans like Peters, who feel abandoned by the league. —Melissa Lockard, The Athletic, 21 Dec. 2024

The song was then almost thirty years old, and in the first stages of a decades-long popular revival, sparked by Dylan’s own electrified and largely incomprehensible rendition of it at the 1991 Grammys. —Jessica Winter, The New Yorker, 13 Dec. 2024

Also, incomprehensible to anyone that understands water policy in the state. —NBC News, 12 Jan. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Latin incomprehensibilis, from in- + comprehensibilis comprehensible

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Rhymes for incomprehensible

• comprehensible
• indefensible
• indispensable
• reprehensible
• supersensible
• compensable
• condensable
• defensible
• dispensable
• extensible
• insensible
• ostensible

Kids Definition

incomprehensible

adjective

in·​com·​pre·​hen·​si·​ble (ˌ)in-ˌkäm-pri-ˈhen(t)-sə-bəl 

: impossible to understand

found their behavior incomprehensible

incomprehensibility

-ˌhen(t)-sə-ˈbil-ət-ē 

noun

incomprehensibly

-ˈhen(t)-sə-blē 

adverb