incurable

[in-kyoor-uh-buhl]

adjective

1. not curable; that cannot be cured, remedied, or corrected.

   an incurable disease.

2. not susceptible to change.

   his incurable pessimism.

   Synonyms: relentless, incorrigible

noun

1. a person with an incurable disease.

incurable

/ ɪnˈkjʊərəbəl /

adjective

1. (esp of a disease) not curable; unresponsive to treatment

noun

1. a person having an incurable disease

Other Word Forms

• incurability noun
• incurableness noun
• incurably adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of incurable¹

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English, from Late Latin incūrābilis; in- ³, curable

Example Sentences

Japan boasts about 100 million people packed mostly into a main island smaller than California, and yet the portrait of that nation painted in “Rental Family” is one of rampant, incurable loneliness.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Chace's tumour is incurable due to where it is in his brain.

Read more on BBC

MND can progress quickly and is incurable but treatment can slow deterioration.

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The latter, afflicted by “the incurable disease of mediocrity,” has led a disappointing life yet still possesses a lust for it.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

As I’ve reported in the past, the targets of these sorts of promotions are consumers who are either looking for alternative treatments for persistent conditions or are dealing with chronic, incurable or terminal illness.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• deadly 
• fatal 
• hopeless 
• inoperable