inextricably
Americanadverb
Etymology
Origin of inextricably
First recorded in 1590–1600; inextricab(le) ( def. ) + -ly
Explanation
Inextricably is an adverb that means in a manner that is impossible to unravel or separate from something else. It usually modifies words like "linked" and "tied." To most Americans, Thanksgiving and turkey are inextricably linked. Inextricably is the adverb form of the adjective inextricable, which comes from the Latin word inextricabilis, meaning "cannot be disentangled." In your mind, summer and the beach are inextricably tied together because you've spent your vacation at the shore for as long as you can remember. Circumstances might inextricably link you and your neighbor when you're trapped in an elevator together for the longest nine hours of your life.
Vocabulary lists containing inextricably
"Letter from Birmingham Jail" by Martin Luther King, Jr. (1963)
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Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" Speech (1963)
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Hidden Figures
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Inextricably woven into the story of the United States is the story of this enterprising, sturdy and innovative company.
From New York Times • Jul. 22, 2020
Inextricably tied to these familial complications in “Stray” are Danler’s romantic struggles — first with a married man she can’t shake, known as the Monster, and then with the Love Interest, a.k.a.
From Los Angeles Times • May 12, 2020
Inextricably linked with this expansion has been another phenomenon - the globalisation of universities.
From BBC • Mar. 2, 2011
Inextricably ensnared in it, Athos cannot leave the town.
From Time Magazine Archive
Inextricably mingled with the masculine view is the individualist view, seeing the world forever and ever as a place of struggle.
From The Forerunner, Volume 1 (1909-1910) by Gilman, Charlotte Perkins
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
