unbelievable
Americanadjective
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too dubious or improbable to be believed.
an unbelievable excuse.
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so remarkable as to strain credulity; extraordinary.
the unbelievable fury of the storm; an unbelievable athlete.
adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of unbelievable
First recorded in 1540–50; un- 1 + believe ( def. ) + -able ( def. )
Explanation
The word unbelievable describes something that is beyond understanding, like the idea, until the Middle Ages, that the earth might actually be round. Unbelievable refers to something that seems incredible (Did you hear the story about the guy who was rescued after being stranded at sea for 6 months on a sailboat?), but it can also refer to something that's so unlikely, so improbable, that you're probably not going to be convinced by it (Hey, did you hear the story about the guy who was rescued after being stranded at sea for 6 months with only a log to keep him afloat?).
Vocabulary lists containing unbelievable
Wow! Synonyms for "Amazing"
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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.
Stokes came close to turning his fury into another unbelievable match-winning knock but such heroics may not have been required had England not thrown away a superb position in their first innings.
From BBC ● Jul. 12, 2026
"But this is to forget that the second goal was just spectacular - almost unbelievable."
From BBC ● Jul. 12, 2026
Plus, to imagine the streamer will keep digging deeper into live sports without one day also adopting live news seems unbelievable.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 30, 2026
“It was such an unbelievable feeling of joy and relief and just pure happiness that this plebe year was over,” he told me.
From Slate ● Jun. 24, 2026
Yep, it’s incredible, amazin’ and unbelievable, but the li’l fellers do occasionally catch the best end of the stick.
From "Friday Night Lights: A Town, A Team, And A Dream" by H.G. Bissinger
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.
