incoherent

[in-koh-heer-uhnt, -her-]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR incoherent ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

without logical or meaningful connection; disjointed; rambling: an incoherent sentence.

characterized by such thought or language, as a person: incoherent with rage.

not coherent or cohering: an incoherent mixture.

lacking physical cohesion; loose: incoherent dust.

lacking unity or harmony of elements: an incoherent public.

lacking congruity of parts; uncoordinated.

different or incompatible by nature, as things.

Physics. (of a wave) having a low degree of coherence.Compare coherent(def 4).

Origin of incoherent

First recorded in 1620–30; in-³ + coherent

Related formsin·co·her·ent·ly, adverb

Synonyms for incoherent

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR incoherent ON THESAURUS.COM

1. confused, irrational, muddled.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for incoherent

muddled, uneven, puzzling, rambling, incongruous, disjointed, incomprehensible, jumbled, irrational, breathless, confused, disconnected, discontinuous, discordant, disordered, dumb, inarticulate, inconsistent, indistinct, indistinguishable

Examples from the Web for incoherent

Contemporary Examples of incoherent

There are no hipsters anymore—at least none that live up to the crazy, incoherent stereotypes in circulation.
Why Do We Hate Hipsters So F'ing Much?
Ted Gioia
July 13, 2014
Sabo is as incoherent and hateful as any run-of-the-mill troll.
Breitbart Twerks Pelosi With Credibility-Destroying Ad
Emily Shire
April 8, 2014
Second, the view that corporations have consciences is incoherent.
Do Corporations Believe in God? The ‘Hobby Lobby’ Case Has the Answer
Jay Michaelson
March 22, 2014
It was from Jack, but so incoherent that I thought he must have lost his reason.
Read ‘The King in Yellow,’ the ‘True Detective’ Reference That’s the Key to the Show
Robert W. Chambers
February 20, 2014
Yet our distinction between secular and religious buildings would have been incoherent to the ancient Greeks.
Virgin Sacrifice and the Meaning of the Parthenon
Nick Romeo
February 12, 2014

Historical Examples of incoherent

Evelyn made some incoherent response, unintelligible to Grace.
Grace Harlowe's Return to Overton Campus
Jessie Graham Flower
The sight greatly staggered him, and he was so affected that his account of it was incoherent.
The Devil's Dictionary
Ambrose Bierce
What an incoherent letter will you have, when I get it to you!
Clarissa, Volume 3 (of 9)
Samuel Richardson
At last he spoke, but his words were strange and incoherent.
Beauty and The Beast, and Tales From Home
Bayard Taylor
Fragments of his life formed the subject of the words, incoherent and disconnected.
Louisiana Lou
William West Winter

British Dictionary definitions for incoherent

incoherent

adjective

lacking in clarity or organization; disordered

unable to express oneself clearly; inarticulate

physics (of two or more waves) having the same frequency but not the same phaseincoherent light

Derived Formsincoherence, incoherency or incoherentness, nounincoherently, adverb

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for incoherent

adj.

1620s, from in- (1) "not, opposite of" + coherent. Related: Incoherently.