unaccountable
Americanadjective
-
impossible to account for; unexplained; inexplicable.
The boat has an unaccountable tendency to yaw.
- Synonyms:
- unintelligible, mysterious, inscrutable, incomprehensible
-
exempt from being called to account; not answerable.
As a subordinate, he is unaccountable for errors in policy.
- Synonyms:
- irresponsible, unanswerable
adjective
-
allowing of no explanation; inexplicable
-
puzzling; extraordinary
an unaccountable fear of hamburgers
-
not accountable or answerable to
Other Word Forms
- unaccountability noun
- unaccountableness noun
- unaccountably adverb
Etymology
Origin of unaccountable
First recorded in 1635–45; un- 1 + accountable
Explanation
People, especially those in leadership positions, are described as unaccountable when they behave as though they don't need to explain themselves, answer to anyone else, or take responsibility for their actions. We often complain about the need for "accountability" when our leaders spend our money, oversee our wars, or make confusing new laws without explaining to us what's going on. If there's nothing in place to keep them from being corrupt, we say that they are "unaccountable." Another interesting definition of unaccountable is "unexplainable." Crop circles, Big Foot sightings, and unidentified flying objects are mysterious and unaccountable.
Vocabulary lists containing unaccountable
"The Minister's Black Veil" by Nathaniel Hawthorne
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The Time Machine
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The Awakening
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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.
One important proposal: Let parents who choose to expose their wannabe-elite athlete children to unaccountable authority figures, in pursuit of college athletic scholarships and Olympic glory, do so on their own dime.
From Salon • Feb. 22, 2026
The Online Safety Act is being implemented in phases, and is intended to prevent past practices which Ofcom described as online platforms being "unregulated, unaccountable and often unwilling to prioritise people's safety over profits."
From BBC • Dec. 4, 2025
Yet here, a single unaccountable administrator effectively outlawed an entire way of life for responsible therapists, guides and small businesses in Hawaii.
From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 10, 2025
They’re not wildly unaccountable, they are a part of the government.
From Slate • Feb. 21, 2025
An unaccountable serenity had stolen upon me; I felt the operations of my wits as clean and mechanical, aiming only at that which needed to transpire: the flight at the appointed time across the mud.
From "The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Volume I: The Pox Party" by M.T. Anderson
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.
