incorrigible

[ in-kawr-i-juh-buh l, -kor- ]

/ ɪnˈkɔr ɪ dʒə bəl, -ˈkɒr- /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR incorrigible ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

not corrigible; bad beyond correction or reform: incorrigible behavior; an incorrigible liar.

impervious to constraints or punishment; willful; unruly; uncontrollable: an incorrigible child; incorrigible hair.

firmly fixed; not easily changed: an incorrigible habit.

not easily swayed or influenced: an incorrigible optimist.

noun

a person who is incorrigible.

RELATED WORDS

Nearby words

Origin of incorrigible

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English word from Latin word incorrigibilis. See in-³, corrigible

Related formsin·cor·ri·gi·bil·i·ty, in·cor·ri·gi·ble·ness, nounin·cor·ri·gi·bly, adverb

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

Examples from the Web for incorrigibility

It was filthy beyond belief,” said Middleton, who was sent to the school for the crime of “incorrigibility.
The Bone Collectors Get to Work at Florida’s Dozier School|Christine Pelisek|September 6, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Emmy- and Tony Award-winning actor Charles Dutton understands the incorrigibility of some violent inmates.
Ex-Prisoners Say Life Term Is Cruel for Teens, As Case Hits High Court|Sandra McElwaine|March 19, 2012|DAILY BEAST
Bad eyesight has been urged for years as a cause of backwardness and incorrigibility in school children.
How To Write Special Feature Articles|Willard Grosvenor Bleyer
The pictured squares were the ironic badge of Hugh's incorrigibility.
Satan Sanderson|Hallie Erminie Rives

She made a gesture of hopelessness at his incorrigibility, and again attempted to withdraw her hands.
Selected Stories|Bret Harte
M. Benedikt said that prison chaplains agreed with medical men in recognising the incorrigibility of certain criminals.
The Criminal|Havelock Ellis
It seemed to him now that at his last visit he had seen in her the symptoms of incorrigibility which were now evident.
The Awakening|Leo Nikoleyevich Tolstoy

British Dictionary definitions for incorrigibility

incorrigible

/ (ɪnˈkɒrɪdʒəbəl) /

adjective

beyond correction, reform, or alteration

firmly rooted; ineradicable

philosophy (of a belief) having the property that whoever honestly believes it cannot be mistakenCompare defeasible

noun

a person or animal that is incorrigible

Derived Formsincorrigibility or incorrigibleness, nounincorrigibly, 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 incorrigibility

incorrigibility

late 15c., from incorrigible + -ity.

incorrigible

adj.

mid-14c., from Old French incorrigible (mid-14c.), or directly from Latin incorrigibilis "not to be corrected," from in- "not, opposite of" (see in- (1)) + corrigibilis, from corrigere "to correct" (see correct). Related: Incorrigibly. As a noun, from 1746.