irrevocable
Americanadjective
adjective
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of irrevocable
First recorded in 1350–1400; a Middle English word from the Latin word irrevocābilis; see ir- 2, revocable
Explanation
If you're on a diet but eat one tiny piece of chocolate, it might start an irrevocable slide into bad eating. Describe something as irrevocable if it cannot be undone or taken back. If you break down irrevocable, you wind up with ir "not," re "back" and vocable from the Latin vocare "to call." So if something is irrevocable, you cannot call it back — it is permanent. You must fulfill an irrevocable promise and live with an irrevocable decision. A law is irrevocable if it states within the law that it cannot be nullified. Now that's final!
Vocabulary lists containing irrevocable
Grade 9, List 3
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"The Black Cat" by Edgar Allan Poe
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The Bluest Eye
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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.
These compressed, higher tax brackets mostly apply to irrevocable, “nongrantor” trusts rather than revocable trusts, because they are treated as separate, standalone taxpayers by the IRS.
From MarketWatch • May 23, 2026
While creditors cannot make claims on an irrevocable trust, JDKatz adds that the court could undo your transfer to a trust.
From MarketWatch • May 23, 2026
When heirs inherit assets in an irrevocable trust, they don’t get the benefit of a step-up in cost basis that they get on assets inherited outside the trust.
From Barron's • May 16, 2026
The ruling at the UK's highest court said adoption should be "permanent and irrevocable" except in rare cases where an adoption decision had been wrongly taken.
From BBC • Apr. 22, 2026
Concerning the private affairs of his subjects, he must insist that his decisions be irrevocable.
From "The Prince" by Niccolò Machiavelli
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.
