Skip to main content
Glite Dictionary
unsoundable

unsoundable

9.9
Too deep to measure, with a bottom you cannot find
  • adjective
  • /ʌnˈsaʊndəbl/
  • Archaic
translation icon : insondable
  • When the crew tried to measure the trench, it proved unsoundable even with their longest rope.

Examples

  • The mariner claimed the pit was unsoundable, its depths beyond the reach of any line.

  • Legends spoke of an unsoundable abyss hidden deep within the jungle.

  • The ocean depths are often unsoundable.

  • This chasm is unsoundable and frightening.

  • The explorer discovered a chasm so deep that it was truly unsoundable.

  • The diver reported that the waters of the canyon were unsoundable even with specialized equipment.

  • During their expedition, they encountered an unsoundable pool that no one could measure accurately.

Synonyms

bottomless
vsunsoundable
12 5.0

So deep that you cannot see or reach the lowest part

is about depth too great to be measured rather than just very deep
unsounded
vsunsoundable
  • Specialized
1 9.8

Too deep to measure, often about water or caves

is described as truly impossible to determine the depth
depthless
vsunsoundable
1 7.2

So far down that it seems to have no bottom, like an ocean or someone's eyes

is stated as unable to be measured for true depth
illimitable
vsunsoundable
  • Literature
1 9.9

An amount or space that has no end and cannot be measured

applies only to depth and measurement, not to limitless extent
immensurable
vsunsoundable
9.9

Too great to measure

focuses specifically on depth measurement, not general size

How Deep

unsoundable
  • Archaic
9.9
bottomless
12 5.0
abyssal
1 9.8
deep
∞ 1.0
shallow
155 1.6

Surface Forms

unsoundable positive

Morphology

unsoundable = soundable (semi-transparent) = un + sound + able

Formation is un- + soundable (sound + -able), but the required verb sense 'sound' = 'measure depth' is specialized and conflicts with the common adjective 'unsound'.

Etymology

The word unsoundable breaks into un- ('not'), sound ('to measure depth', as sailors do), and -able ('able to'), so it literally means 'not able to be sounded'. That is why something unsoundable is too deep or too wide for a rope or line to measure.