incompatible

[ in-kuhm-pat-uh-buhl ]

/ ˌɪn kəmˈpæt ə bəl /

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See synonyms for: incompatible / incompatibility / incompatibly on Thesaurus.com

adjective

not compatible; unable to exist together in harmony: She asked for a divorce because they were utterly incompatible.

contrary or opposed in character; discordant: incompatible colors.

that cannot coexist or be conjoined.

Logic.

(of two or more propositions) unable to be true simultaneously.
(of two or more attributes of an object) unable to belong to the object simultaneously; inconsistent.

(of positions, functions, ranks, etc.) unable to be held simultaneously by one person.

Medicine/Medical. of or relating to biological substances that interfere with one another physiologically, as different types of blood in a transfusion.

Pharmacology. of or relating to drugs that interfere with one another chemically or physiologically and therefore cannot be mixed or prescribed together.

noun

Usually incompatibles. incompatible persons or things.

an incompatible drug or the like.

incompatibles, Logic.

two or more propositions that cannot be true simultaneously.
two or more attributes that cannot simultaneously belong to the same object.

OTHER WORDS FOR incompatible

1 unsuitable, unsuited.

1, 2 inharmonious.

2 contradictory.

See synonyms for incompatible on Thesaurus.com

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Origin of incompatible

From the Medieval Latin word incompatibilis, dating back to 1555–65. See in-³, compatible

synonym study for incompatible

1. See inconsistent.

OTHER WORDS FROM incompatible

in·com·pat·i·bil·i·ty, in·com·pat·i·ble·ness, nounin·com·pat·i·bly, adverb

Words nearby incompatible

incommunicado, incommunicative, incommutable, incompact, incomparable, incompatible, incompetence, incompetent, incomplete, incomplete abortion, incomplete dominance

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use incompatible in a sentence

Violence is incompatible with the exercise of democratic rights and freedoms.
Woman dies after shooting in U.S. Capitol; D.C. National Guard activated after mob breaches building|Washington Post Staff|January 7, 2021|Washington Post
The law prohibits employers from firing, demoting or otherwise retaliating against workers who refuse to take part in activities they believe are incompatible with public health and safety mandates.
Workers are getting fired and penalized for reporting COVID safety violations|lbelanger225|October 23, 2020|Fortune
Additionally, the amount of data being collected by companies was exploding, but they usually spread it across many storage facilities and kept it in incompatible formats.
Meet Snowflake, one of the buzziest tech IPOs ever|Aaron Pressman|September 15, 2020|Fortune
One section of the ordinance, which regulates behavior around elections, campaign finance and lobbying, bans so-called “incompatible activities.”
Barrios Was Paid by Union While Working for Council President|Andrew Keatts and Jesse Marx|September 2, 2020|Voice of San Diego

To meet global demand, producers have continued to burn coal at a rate that’s incompatible with international climate goals and a stable climate.
The coal industry is finally closing more plants than it’s building|Michael J. Coren|August 6, 2020|Quartz
Interesting that those who sat in judgment of him found those two sets of beliefs to be incompatible.
In Defense of Blasphemy|Michael Tomasky|January 9, 2015|DAILY BEAST
But the site is incompatible with special screen reading software that would make it accessible to blind readers.
TEDx Talks Have a Disability Problem—but This Incredible Young Woman Is Working to Change That|Nina Strochlic|November 5, 2014|DAILY BEAST
She was a New Woman: She demanded the vote but also a life in which being married and having a career were not incompatible.
Wonder Woman’s Creation Story Is Wilder Than You Could Ever Imagine|Tom Arnold-Forster|November 3, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Many jazz fans were puzzled by this finding, which seems incompatible with the lackluster sales figures in the genre.
Jazz (The Music of Coffee and Donuts) Has Respect, But It Needs Love|Ted Gioia|June 15, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Indeed, the idea that an elected official should act exactly as voters demand is incompatible with the way our government works.
Voting for Slavery? Jim Wheeler Gets Into Hot Water|Jamelle Bouie|October 30, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Frankly, we must say that this is inconceivably incompatible with Señor Paternoʼs clear intelligence.
The Philippine Islands|John Foreman
Glory is not incompatible with youth, and the hero of the 26th February may become the hero of the 9th January.
Journal of a Voyage to Brazil|Maria Graham
Surely they must possess certain merits which do not harmonise together and certain virtues which are incompatible.
The 'Characters' of Jean de La Bruyre|Jean de La Bruyre
Certainly, the existence of such old ruins of the middle-ages is incompatible with the grandeurs of modern Paris.
Catherine de' Medici|Honore de Balzac
You have seen, Madam, in my preceding letter, the incompatible and contradictory ideas which this religion gives us of the Deity.
Letters To Eugenia|Paul Henri Thiry Holbach

British Dictionary definitions for incompatible

incompatible

/ (ˌɪnkəmˈpætəbəl) /

adjective

incapable of living or existing together in peace or harmony; conflicting or antagonistic

opposed in nature or quality; inconsistent

(of an office, position, etc) only able to be held by one person at a time

med (esp of two drugs or two types of blood) incapable of being combined or used together; antagonistic

logic (of two propositions) unable to be both true at the same time

(of plants)

not capable of forming successful grafts
incapable of fertilizing each other

maths another word for inconsistent (def. 4)

noun

(often plural) a person or thing that is incompatible with another

Derived forms of incompatible

incompatibility or incompatibleness, nounincompatibly, 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

incompatible

OTHER WORDS FOR incompatible

Origin of incompatible

synonym study for incompatible

OTHER WORDS FROM incompatible

Words nearby incompatible

Words related to incompatible

How to use incompatible in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for incompatible

Derived forms of incompatible