irreversible
Americanadjective
adjective
-
not able to be reversed
the irreversible flow of time
-
not able to be revoked or repealed; irrevocable
-
chem physics capable of changing or producing a change in one direction only
an irreversible reaction
-
thermodynamics (of a change, process, etc) occurring through a number of intermediate states that are not all in thermodynamic equilibrium
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of irreversible
First recorded in 1620–30; ir- 2 + reversible
Explanation
If you can't undo something, it's irreversible. Time is always irreversible, as is the damage done to your skin by too much sun, so be sure to wear sunblock! While you see reverse inside of this word, you wouldn't use it to describe a car that can't go backwards. However, if the car was in an accident and cannot be fixed, you could say that the damage done to the car was pretty much irreversible, in other words the car is totaled.
Vocabulary lists containing irreversible
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze said last year that Tbilisi's path towards joining the EU was "steady and irreversible", despite Brussels effectively freezing Georgia's accession process.
From Barron's • May 26, 2026
It suggests that no other irreversible power to immunize lurks in the Constitution’s silences.
From Slate • May 26, 2026
"Our findings reveal that aging in blood stem cells is not an irreversible fate. Old blood stem cells have the capacity to revert to a youthful state; they can bounce back," said Dr. Ghaffari.
From Science Daily • May 12, 2026
In February 2016, a majority of justices decided only that an almost certainly unconstitutional regulation should be paused so the court could review it before it caused irreversible consequences.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 26, 2026
That one temporary decision became irreversible, because no shipyards remained to turn out ships that would prove the folly of that temporary decision, and to serve as a focus for rebuilding other shipyards.
From "Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies" by Jared M. Diamond
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
