uncontrollable
Americanadjective
noun
adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of uncontrollable
Explanation
Uncontrollable things can't be managed or influenced. An uncontrollable three-year-old can be a handful, while a politician with an uncontrollable desire for power can be dangerous. If you fly off the handle at the smallest irritation, snapping angrily at the people around you, you have an uncontrollable temper. And when you and your best friend burst into giggles in the middle of chemistry class, it's uncontrollable laughter that's going to get you in trouble. When something is controllable, it can be restricted or restrained. Add the "not" prefix un-, and you've got something uncontrollable.
Vocabulary lists containing uncontrollable
"Tinker v. Des Moines": Excerpts from Justice Black's Dissenting Opinion
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"Fear" and "Violence Hits Home"
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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.
These complex and lengthy logs are the focal point of ongoing investigations into how and why the bots at OpenAI broke out of their containment and went on an uncontrollable hacking spree.
From BBC ● Sep. 9, 2026
“Saving all of humanity forever from uncontrollable AI.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 6, 2026
Maxx didn’t reflect an uncontrollable macroeconomic slump or inherent brand weakness, but an operational misstep management can fix.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 20, 2026
Fires are uncontrollable when they exceed the firefighters' ability to "put the wet stuff onto the red stuff fast enough to put them out", bushfire consultant Roger Fenwick told AFP.
From Barron's ● Aug. 3, 2026
The manager, a chortling woman full of a seemingly uncontrollable happiness, told her, “Great! Wonderful to talk to you! You'll hear from me soon!”
From "Americanah" by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
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.
