inclement
Americanadjective
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(of the weather, the elements, etc.) severe, rough, or harsh; stormy.
-
not kind or merciful.
adjective
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(of weather) stormy, severe, or tempestuous
-
harsh, severe, or merciless
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of inclement
1615–25; < Latin inclēment-, equivalent to in- in- 3 + clēment- (stem of clēmēns ) clement
Explanation
Inclement usually refers to severe or harsh weather that is cold and wet. When packing for a trip to the Caribbean bring tank tops and shorts, but don't forget a raincoat in case of inclement weather. This adjective can also refer to a person or action that is harsh and unmerciful. Inclement is from a Latin root formed from the prefix in- "not" plus clemens "clement." This English adjective clement can mean either mild or merciful; the more commonly used noun clemency can mean mildness or mercy.
Vocabulary lists containing inclement
The Vocabulary.com Top 1000
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Grade 11, List 4
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100 SAT Words Beginning with "I"
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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.
Existing-home sales fell 8.4% in January, the biggest monthly decline in nearly four years, though economists attributed some of that decline to the inclement weather.
From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 26, 2026
Rescuers, stymied by inclement weather, so far have located the bodies of seven women and a man killed in the avalanche.
From BBC • Feb. 19, 2026
USC should be used to the inclement weather by now.
From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 14, 2025
Cal Fire reported that firefighting aircraft had been grounded due to inclement weather as winds were blowing at 12 to 16 mph out of the south, with gusts up to 24 mph.
From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 13, 2025
Esteban Trueba had been fighting to get one for four years, and they delivered it just when he did not even have a roof to protea it from inclement weather.
From "The House of the Spirits: A Novel" by Isabel Allende
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.
