inconclusive

[in-kuhn-kloo-siv]

adjective

1. not conclusive; not resolving fully all doubts or questions.

   inconclusive evidence.

2. without final results or outcome.

   inconclusive experiments.

inconclusive

/ ˌɪnkənˈkluːsɪv /

adjective

1. not conclusive or decisive; not finally settled; indeterminate

Other Word Forms

• inconclusively adverb
• inconclusiveness noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of inconclusive¹

First recorded in 1680–90; in- ³ + conclusive

Example Sentences

Manufacturers, regulators and airlines have said these types of incidents are too infrequent, levels of contamination too low and scientific research on lasting health risks too inconclusive to warrant a comprehensive fix.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

On nought, Knight was given out caught behind on the field but the third umpire overturned it, saying there "inconclusive" evidence there was no bat.

Read more on BBC

Twenty one weeks on from her death and the family have not got any answers as to the cause of Zipporah's death, after an inconclusive post-mortem examination.

Read more on BBC

After the game, Riley described his injury as only “inconclusive.”

Read more on Los Angeles Times

What they got instead was inconclusive meeting that produced no agreement of any sort, followed by “an awkward press appearance” captured by the Washington Post with a textbook people-are-saying deflection:

Read more on Salon

Related Words

• ambiguous 
• deficient 
• incomplete 
• uncertain 
• unconvincing 
• uneventful 
• unsatisfactory 
• unsettled 
• vague