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irredeemable

[ir-i-dee-muh-buh l]
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adjective
  1. not redeemable; incapable of being bought back or paid off.
  2. irremediable; irreparable; hopeless.
  3. beyond redemption; irreclaimable.
  4. (of paper money) not convertible into gold or silver.
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Origin of irredeemable

First recorded in 1600–10; ir-2 + redeemable
Related formsir·re·deem·a·bil·i·ty, ir·re·deem·a·ble·ness, nounir·re·deem·a·bly, adverb
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for irredeemable

Historical Examples

  • There was the thought he had to face, and behind him lay his own irredeemable blunder.

    Antony Gray,--Gardener

    Leslie Moore

  • We are to-day flooding the country with an irredeemable currency.

    A Military Genius

    Sarah Ellen Blackwell

  • As to his real opinion on an irredeemable currency there can be no doubt.

    Fiat Money Inflation in France

    Andrew Dickson White

  • This arrest of our great friend is a misfortune, but not an irredeemable one.

    Lothair

    Benjamin Disraeli

  • But this irredeemable and final disaster is surely incredible.

British Dictionary definitions for irredeemable

irredeemable

adjective
  1. (of bonds, debentures, shares, etc) without a date of redemption of capital; incapable of being bought back directly or paid off
  2. (of paper money) not convertible into specie
  3. (of a sinner) not able to be saved or reformed
  4. (of a loss) not able to be recovered; irretrievable
  5. not able to be improved or rectified; irreparable
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Derived Formsirredeemability or irredeemableness, nounirredeemably, 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 irredeemable

adj.

c.1600, from assimilated form of in- (1) "not, opposite of" + redeemable. Related: Irredeemably.

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper