unspeakable
3
8.1
- adjective
- /ʌnˈspiːkəbl/
- Literature
:
inefable
- How could I speak the unspeakable?
- unspeakable joy
- speak the unspeakable
And the word that I would like to eradicate today is unspeakable because I think everything should be spoken.
- And the word that I would like to eradicate today is unspeakable because I think everything should be spoken.
Examples
-
Is that also the darkness of unspeakable sin?
Fiction book (1997) -
So all we're really left with is just this string of consonants, you know, an unspeakable name.
-
We're never nearer Christ than when we're lost in a holy amazement at His unspeakable love.
Blog text (27) -
They are messengers of overwhelming grief and unspeakable love." --Washington
Blog text (8) -
I say to us all, on this day that is heavy with the possibility of a future where we may be called to suffer awhile, that there still is wonder in the world and a joy unspeakable if we but still our sorrow and set our souls in silence and peace in the presence of the Almighty.
Blog text (15) -
There is humbleness of mind, gentleness, long-suffering, the whole image of God; and at the same time, a peace that passeth all understanding, and joy unspeakable and full of glory.
Blog text (6) -
God's name (YHWH), translated as "Lord God" in most Bibles and roughly equivalent to the term "Yahweh," has long been considered so holy that it is unspeakable.
Blog text (23) -
The beauty of the sunset was so breathtaking that it felt almost unspeakable.
-
In their grief, they experienced an unspeakable loss that left them in silence.
-
The unspeakable tragedy of the event moved everyone to tears.
Synonyms
8
9.5
So great that words cannot describe it
3
7.5
A feeling so strong that you cannot describe it in words
Too holy to be spoken aloud
Too holy or respected to say the name aloud
So strong or deep that words cannot describe it
So great you cannot describe it in words
So offensive that people do not say it
How Sacred
Surface Forms
Morphology
Etymology
Unspeakable comes from the parts un- 'not' and speak 'say'. A helpful way to remember the religious sense is to imagine a name so sacred that people are told not to speak it aloud. That's why unspeakable can mean 'too sacred to be spoken'.