unanswerable
Americanadjective
-
not capable of being answered; not having a known or discoverable answer.
an unanswerable question.
-
not open to dispute or rebuttal; irrefutable; conclusive.
an unanswerable proof.
adjective
-
incapable of being refuted
-
(of a question) not admitting of any answer
Other Word Forms
- unanswerableness noun
- unanswerably adverb
Etymology
Origin of unanswerable
First recorded in 1605–15; un- 1 + answerable
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.
“He speaks for the voiceless and tried his best to come up with answers to problems that seem unanswerable.”
From Los Angeles Times
But the perpetually unanswerable question is whether they will be up to whatever comes next.
From BBC
The boy was sentenced to seven years in custody while the girl was given a three-year youth rehabilitation order and made subject to a six-month curfew, which Mrs Kohli said was "unanswerable".
From BBC
For director Alex Ross Perry, it boiled down to the admittedly unanswerable question of whether the band in its time could have been bigger than it was.
From Los Angeles Times
No wonder I am such a huge wrestling fan where Penn State won the league and tournament so I am not left scratching my head while trying to answer seemingly unanswerable questions.
From Los Angeles Times
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.
