unrecognizable
Britishadjective
Explanation
Anything that's unrecognizable can't be identified, often because it has changed so much. If your brother's Halloween costume is so elaborate that you can't even tell it's him under all that makeup, he's unrecognizable. This adjective is often used for things that have been badly damaged: "After the hurricane's destruction, the town was unrecognizable." You can also use it in a more positive way: "Once my bike was repaired and painted it was completely unrecognizable!" Unrecognizable comes from the prefix un-, or "not," and the Latin recognoscere, "recall to mind or know again."
Vocabulary lists containing unrecognizable
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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.
Leto’s grumbling Brit-inflected baritone is an unrecognizable concoction of trilled r’s and plummy vowels — and the best performance he’s done in years.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 3, 2026
The organization argued that without access to loyalty members’ hyperspecific data, discounts as they stand will become unrecognizable.
From Salon ● May 18, 2026
But lately the event has been almost unrecognizable to veterans of the 40-year-old stroll.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 14, 2026
“With AI, we’re only in the first inning is what I tell people. And the world, 10 years from now, will be unrecognizable to us.”
From Los Angeles Times ● May 5, 2026
I’ve spent fourteen years in London, yet the city feels unrecognizable.
From "The Bletchley Riddle" by Ruta Sepetys and Steve Sheinkin
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.
