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Glite Dictionary
unsmotherable spirit

unsmotherable spirit

9.4
A strong wish to keep trying that cannot be stopped
  • noun
  • Literature
translation icon : espíritu indomable
  • Despite years of adversity, his unsmotherable spirit inspired everyone around him.

Examples

  • Even in defeat, she maintained an unsmotherable spirit and encouraged her teammates to persevere.

  • The team's unsmotherable spirit pushed them to victory against all odds.

  • Her unsmotherable spirit inspires everyone around her.

  • He faced adversity with an unsmotherable spirit!

  • Despite facing numerous challenges, her unsmotherable spirit motivated her friends to keep going.

  • His unsmotherable spirit shone brightly even during the toughest moments of his life.

  • The artist's unsmotherable spirit gave her the strength to pursue her dreams against all odds.

Synonyms

unbreakable spirit
vsunsmotherable spirit
1 4.5

A strong will to keep trying when things are hard

is immune to suppression and cannot be put down by others
implacability
vsunsmotherable spirit
  • Formal
9.5

Hard to calm or please and not likely to change

focuses on refusal to be suppressed rather than on being harsh

Antonyms

subdued
11 5.5

Quiet and controlled in voice or actions, not noisy

suppressed
5.7

Kept secret on purpose so people do not know about it

How Determined

unsmotherable spirit
  • Literature
9.4
resolve
92 4.4
determination
142 3.0
hesitation
110 2.8
weakness
133 1.4

Surface Forms

unsmotherable spirit singular
unsmotherable spirits plural

Morphology

unsmotherable + spirit

The phrase is fully compositional: 'unsmotherable' decomposes into un- (negation) + smother (to suppress/suffocate) + -able (able to), yielding 'not able to be smothered', and combined with 'spirit' gives 'a spirit that cannot be suppressed'. This formation follows regular English morphology and common negation patterns (also found in many other languages), so a B1 learner who knows the constituent morphemes and words should be able to infer the meaning.

Etymology

The expression unsmotherable spirit comes from a simple image: someone tries to smother a small candle, but the flame keeps burning and will not go out. So it means a 'spirit' that 'cannot be put out' or 'cannot be stopped'.