inscrutable

[in-skroo-tuh-buhl]

adjective

incapable of being investigated, analyzed, or scrutinized; impenetrable.

not easily understood; mysterious; unfathomable: an inscrutable smile.

incapable of being seen through physically; physically impenetrable: the inscrutable depths of the ocean.

Origin of inscrutable

First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English word from Late Latin word inscrūtābilis. See in-³, scrutable

Related formsin·scru·ta·bil·i·ty, in·scru·ta·ble·ness, nounin·scru·ta·bly, adverb

Synonyms for inscrutable

1. hidden, incomprehensible, undiscoverable, inexplicable.

Synonym study

1. See mysterious.

Antonyms for inscrutable

1. comprehensible.

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

Examples from the Web for inscrutably

Historical Examples of inscrutably

He looked at me, inscrutably and attentively, through his gold spectacles.
Romance
Joseph Conrad and F.M. Hueffer
But she herself, for a time, continued to wait, only looking up at him inscrutably.
The Golden Bowl
Henry James
Clare glanced at her inscrutably, and began to score the other essays.
Regiment of Women
Clemence Dane
He loomed at the back of her thoughts, inscrutably dark and romantic.
The Happy End
Joseph Hergesheimer
I insisted, but he stared at me inscrutably, and said that he had no record of the man.
The Seats Of The Mighty, Complete
Gilbert Parker

British Dictionary definitions for inscrutably

inscrutable

adjective

incomprehensible; mysterious or enigmatic

Derived Formsinscrutability or inscrutableness, nouninscrutably, adverb

Word Origin for inscrutable

C15: from Late Latin inscrūtābilis, from Latin in- 1 + scrūtārī to examine

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 inscrutably

inscrutable

adj.

c.1500, from Late Latin inscrutabilis, from in- "not, opposite of" (see in- (1)) + scrutabilis, from scrutari "examine, ransack" (see scrutiny). Related: Inscrutably.