incontrovertible
Americanadjective
adjective
Other Word Forms
- incontrovertibility noun
- incontrovertibleness noun
- incontrovertibly adverb
Etymology
Origin of incontrovertible
First recorded in 1640–50; in- 3 + controvertible ( def. )
Explanation
When something is incontrovertible, it is undeniably, absolutely, 100 percent, completely true. That rain is wet is an incontrovertible fact. If you look at incontrovertible, you see that -controver-, as in controversy, is hiding inside. Add in the prefix, and it's easy to see that incontrovertible means there is no controversy about something, or, in other words, it is unchangeable and true. Incontrovertible evidence or proof is what you are looking for if you suspect that someone is doing something wrong.
Vocabulary lists containing incontrovertible
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The Namesake
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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.
If the allegations are false, he needs to refute each and every detail in thorough, incontrovertible fashion.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 10, 2026
Start with some incontrovertible rules to live by.
From MarketWatch • Jan. 9, 2026
Sir Mark, speaking before he had seen the film's Wednesday evening broadcast, said that "where there is incontrovertible evidence" of wrongdoing it is likely that accused serving officers would be dismissed within weeks.
From BBC • Oct. 1, 2025
The covid-19 pandemic would be a wake-up call for America, advocates for the elderly predicted: incontrovertible proof that the nation wasn’t doing enough to care for vulnerable older adults.
From Salon • Feb. 12, 2024
The heavily illustrated volume, just 165 pages long, presented incontrovertible evidence that humans and chimpanzees were built to the same body plan.
From "The Scientists" by John Gribbin
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.
