impervious
Americanadjective
-
not permitting penetration or passage; impenetrable.
The coat is impervious to rain.
-
incapable of being injured or impaired.
impervious to wear and tear.
-
incapable of being influenced, persuaded, or affected.
impervious to reason; impervious to another's suffering.
- Synonyms:
- closed , invulnerable
adjective
-
not able to be penetrated, as by water, light, etc; impermeable
-
not able to be influenced (by) or not receptive (to)
impervious to argument
Other Word Forms
- imperviously adverb
- imperviousness noun
Etymology
Origin of impervious
From the Latin word impervius, dating back to 1640–50. See im- 2, pervious
Compare meaning
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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.
He has deployed nuclear weapons to Belarus and, in recent weeks, tested a nuclear-powered missile and a nuclear-powered submarine drone that he claims are impervious to American defenses.
The rulings are the work of a judicial system that has long taken pride in being impervious to political pressure.
He then pivoted to defend his economic strategy against fears of a market downturn, portraying the U.S. as impervious to pressure.
But ferocious fire in recent years, fueled by climate change, has proved fatal to the trees experts once thought were impervious to flame.
From Los Angeles Times
Unfortunately, the Dodgers are not impervious to injury issues.
From Los Angeles Times
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.
